The Dragonboy of Berk
by Grandtheftfandom
Summary: Responding to a strange rumor about a boy clad in the black of Nightfury on the eastern side of the Island and Berk, Stoick and a small party of Vikings run into a once thought lost boy, Stoick's son, Hiccup. Returning to the village after so long will be an entirely new challenge for the boy. Summary kind of sucks, but I hope you enjoy the story!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Now, First off I want to say that this story is pretty much entirely designed to get rid of extra creative thoughts I am having so it's updates might be sporadic (But knowing me you'll probably get like three over the next few weeks before it level's out.) Secondly, I want to tell everyone who may read some of my other fictions that this won't interrupt the regular updating schedule at all, actually I have decided to increase my number of updates in general, rather than just realize a bunch of "Bonus chapters", besides five's a nice rounded number.**

 **Now, to actually talk about this story, I've been a How to Tran Your Dragon fan since the first one came out (Having not known about the book series it's based off till recently.) I just really like it all round, but I have always kinda wondered what would happen if Hiccup was stronger physically, or more adept or something, it's not like a scrawny person is automatically weak, agility is just as useful in a fight as brute strength (I should know, I use agility to survive all my fights, that I don't get into because I don't go out :P) and after thinking about that for awhile this little egg of a fiction was spawned in my mind and now you get to read it (And give me your thoughts preferably.) Also, I'm actually way behind on most of the TV shows (And the Netflix one as well.) Due to a specifically shitty 2015 and a lack of general knowledge about it until one of my younger brothers literally walked in goes "Season two of Race to the edge is out!" I did a double take and said 'There's a season 1?' so yeah, if my characters are off (Or coincidentally are made up for the purpose of progressing dialogue, please don't hate me too much.)**

 **Sorry for the long Author's notes, I'll let you get too it!**

* * *

Stoick sat at the end of a long table, the more prominent head's from the numerous clan's of Berk spread out before him, he watched the men in front of him calmly as the meeting began.

Spitelout stood silently eyeing the men around him calmly before speaking "I've been hearing some strange rumors about the other side of the island."

The council paused, almost all of the men present were aware of the rumor mentioned, merchants who landed on the opposite side of the island spoke of a boy, clad in the black of a nightfury, he would ask them a simple question, should they state their intentions for Berk truthfully they were allowed to pass, should they lie, well let's just say not a lot of liars had visited Berk lately.

"This 'Dragonboy of Berk' is getting out of hand, he is not the authority on who is allowed into Berk, Johann had been one of the only merchants allowed in the village, probably because the boy couldn't put up with his overly lengthy stories about nothing important." Spitelout finished with a growl, recalling a few of the trader's tales, that were almost forcefully jammed into his mind.

"I agree," Egil Hofferson nodded, getting too his feet, the man was not usually known for his outstanding confidence, preferring to sit quietly and listen, he preferred analyzing facts over jumping to reckless action, a trait most Vikings could stand to learn from "At the rate we are going we will not have enough food to last a winter, or materials for repairs in case of more dragon attacks!"

Stoick glanced between the two men calmly, he heaved a sigh as he stood up, frankly tired from a long day of cheifing "So, What do you propose we do?"

"I suggest a search party, find the boy, see if we can reason with him and bring him back, he has dispatched a number of merchants guards with relative ease, he might be a useful addition to the dragon academy assuming his is young enough not to be considered a man." Egil suggested, logically wanting to make use of someone who could be a powerful ally to Berk.

"Oh, Trollsface!" Spitelout exclaimed angrily "He has endangered the lives of everyone here on Berk by attempting to play judge, I say we go out and end the upstart."

The men turned to Stoick silently, the large man rubbed his hands together, an awkward feeling spreading from his stomach at the idea of killing a boy he didn't know, but he also had no argument for Spitelout's plan either.

"We will combine the plans," Stoick announced flatly, getting to his feet, the massive expanse of Viking silenced protests quickly "Capture him if you are able, kill him if you must, who do you plan to take?"

"A few of our more seasoned men, a handful should be enough." Spitelout replied flatly

"I'll be going as well, as the leader of Berk I should have investigated these rumors sooner, before they could cause a problem such as this." Stoick announced, grabbing his axe and he left the meeting.

"We will set out in an hour, collect your weapons and men quickly." He finished as he exited the great hall.

The teen's of the village walked by the chief as he strode down the stairs, the all glanced at him before quickly scurrying up the stairs, none really wanting to draw the attention of the assumed angry chief.

Gobber hobbled his way over to the chief and gave the large man a light pat on the shoulder with his hooked appendage "Your scaring the youngsters Stoick, what happened?"

"We are off to hunt a rumor," Stoick replied with a sigh, beard shifting around as he turned his head "Care to join me?"

"Can't say that I do," Gobber shrugged "Forge work to get to, weapons to repair, dragon attacks to prepare for."

Stoick rolled his eyes "Aye, I understand, hold down the village while I'm gone, I'm trusting that to you."

Gobber saluted with his hook and grinned "Course, I'll keep everything in tip top shape for your return, not one building will go down in flames tonight!"

Stoick chuckled silently at the man's enthusiasm, he nodded his gratefully and left for the forest behind his home, the thicket being the fastest way to the opposite side of the island.

* * *

The men that would be accompanying him arrived shortly in a quick stream, Spitelout, Egil and a number of their clan's members were present all in all around twelve Vikings stood in front of the chief, weapons drawn and ready.

"Remember, capture him if you are able, only kill him if you must." Stoick announced loudly in order "Whatever he has done, it was holding Berk's best interests at heart, do not forget that."

With that the group set off into the tree's, it didn't take long for the group to arrive on the correct side of the island, instantly recognizable by the thick fog that spread out before them, animals sounded in the distance and bushes shook as small critters dashed away from the group.

"Fan out, the boy will most likely come to you." Spitelout announced, giving a quick hand signal to Egil, who nodded and relayed it to his own men, the group quickly widened into pairs and began moving through the fog, Stoick noticed the moment he stepped into the cloud, the forest fell deathly silent.

The large Viking glanced around curiously, unbeknownst to him a small pair of emerald eyes watched the group with minor curiosity.

"Now that I have your attention." He whispered under his breath, he darted between the tree's, keeping his footfalls light and silent as he moved to the edge of the group.

The boy perched on a tree above a pair of men, both seemed quite bored at the ordeal of chasing him through the forest, one leaned against a tree while the other idly tried to see through the fog.

The boy's perch allowed him a solid vantage point to listen to what the men were saying.

"Why are we even here, the chief and the heads should be able to handle this on their own." The man against the tree complained.

"I know, I'd much rather be in the great hall, warmth of the fire, nice mug of mead and a slightly burly bar maid at my side than out here half freezing to death." The other responded gruffly.

When he received no reply he turned around in confusion, as a black armored fist flew into his head, the surprise and the effectively knocking him out, the man toppled the ground with a heavy thud.

The boy wiped his hands together, his face was obscured by a dark leather face plate, the armor he was also black leather, small cuts of brown leather could be seen connecting the chest piece to the shoulders, the gauntlet's cut off at his knuckles, his fingers half covered a by a thick set of gloves, dark green pants led to furred boots, the shoulder piece had a blood red symbol of a snarling dragon on it.

A low growl brought his attention behind him, a large grey wolf snarled at him angrily, he was no stranger to the animals of this forest, lifting his face plate he inclined his head, the Wolf quieted, ears perking at the sound of others like the ones in front of him on his territory.

The boy made no motion to back down, locking his eyes with the animal it let out a low warning growl taking it as a sign of challenge, the boy raised his hands calmly and again inclined his head, a silent request for him to use the edge of the Wolf's territory for a short amount of time, hoping the animal would see the respect he was offering, a fight with a wolf could get loud, especially if the pack was nearby.

The animal again, ceased it's growled, eyeing the boy with a curious eye it moved towards him, the boy held out his hand, balled into a fist cautiously, the Wolf took a quick sniff as his knuckles as shook his body, fur shaking under the movement, the animal inclined it's head ever so slightly before darting back into the bushes.

The boy sighed in slight relief, he did not like using the land of other animals, he was glad he was able to get permission from the Wolf before moving on, he moved back into the tree's, eying the fog carefully, he was no stranger to it, his side of the island was almost permanently coated in it, it obstructed the vision of people that were not accustomed to its patterns, the ominous presence it provided succeeded in keeping most humans away, the fog parted ever so slightly for a moment as he could make out another pair, this one considerably more guarded than the first.

He quickly scaled a large tree and moved across the branches quietly, glancing to his immediate left he noticed shadows against the stars 'The large scaled beasts are coming, what did that human call them? Dragon's? Yes, the Dragons are coming again.'

The boy frowned, even carnivorous animals avoided human settlements, not out of fear, out of simple understanding, most were aware that killing a human only incurred the wrath of the others, it was a surefire way to bring doom unto one's self.

He pulled his eyes back to his current task, he was now perched directly above the two men, each had their backs to each other and moved in perfect sync, as they watched all possible directions in front of them.

The boy could only smirk as he dropped down, legs whipping around mid fall to catch the pair with a loud thud, he was not bulky like the men in front of him, he was lean, but relying on nothing but instinct had trained him quite well, every animal on the island, even humans had a weakness, strike that point and even the most resilient of foes would topple easily.

He smirked under his mask, he hadn't been aware that driving away the other men would bring more people to his side of the island, but he took their blatant disregard for all permission as an open challenge. A number of them had now entered the territory he had carved out for himself, he wouldn't allow them to do as they please, no matter how much respect they showed him.

His head lifted at the sound of a twig snapping, a black haired man watched him in surprise, the metal blade on his hip was in his hand in an instant, he shouted a loud warning to the other men, the boy could hear them closing in on him already.

"Will you come with us quietly?" The man asked flatly

The boy watched the man in minor surprise, they meant to capture him? Reduce the territory he had built to nothing, there was no greater insult to him at that moment, his blood burned as rage entered the emeralds of his eyes, the man stiffened at the look from those eyes, it was like staring into the eyes of a dragon, the pupils narrowed to near slits as the boy moved.

Spitelout barely had enough time to life his sword as he was rushed, he was not aware the boy even carried a weapon until the small knife chinked off the edge of his sword, Spitelout noticed the weapon was un-bloodied, meaning that none of his or Egil's man had fallen victim to it, but the sheer amount of force the smaller boy could produce took the large Viking off guard.

Spitelout pushed back, throwing the boys weapon arm back of his head, the dagger flew into the air, Spitelout grinned triumphantly as he brought the blade around at the boys head, the boy dropped onto his back, the blade flying over him uselessly, before popping back up and jumping into the air he planted both feet against the large mans chest and used a kick to push himself backwards, catching the hilt of the knife in a reverse grip and holding it in front of him, the metal glinted slightly as the fog around him cleared and allowed moonlight to seep to the forest floor.

Spitelout shook his head roughly as he regained his balance, his eyes narrowed on the boy in front of him and he charged with a loud cry, the boy darted forward, looking as if he planned to take the Viking on in a contest of strength, Spitelout grinned victoriously as he brought his sword down, before the metal could strike the boy took a quick back step, the man's eyes widened as the blade embedded itself into the dirt, the boy darted up the blade and delivered two swift kicks to the mans chest forcing him away from his weapon, before sticking the inside of the man's leg, Spitelout dropped to his knee as his balance was broken, the boys boot caught the side of his head with a loud thud, the large man fell to the ground, stars dotting his vision as he attempted to crawl towards his weapon, the boy stepped over his and delivered a quick two knuckle strike to the back of the man's neck, he fell unconscious instantly.

The boy's head darted around as someone let out a shout, he clicked his tongue in annoyance as he realized he had forgotten to pay attention to the others, without the fog to hide him they could find him considerably easier as well, the axe swing from the massive man in front of him missed by a hairs breath, the boy didn't have time to dodge the follow up punch, he was sent sprawling along the ground, helmet, bouncing off a tree, the boy shook his head, the stars in his vision dancing around as black encroached on the corner of his eyes, the punch was simply jarring, he got to his feet quickly and held his jaw and winced.

The emerald eyes flared as adrenaline coursed through his veins, he bared his teeth slightly in anger, the small white scare on his chin stretching slightly, before his eyes fell on the man's expression and all anger quickly turned to confusion, the man's eyes did not hold anger, malice or any intent of violence, he simply stared at him an almost pained expression on his face.

"H-Hiccup?" The large Viking stuttered only once "Is that you?"

The boy paused, the memories of the time before the forest were hazy at best, but he remember that tone, a rush of nostalgia hit him as a few slightly blurred images of the face in front of him flashed before his eyes he remembered, his eyes widened in surprise as he looked at the man in front of him.

"Dad?" The boy responded slowly, the name felt foreign in his mouth, he had always assumed he ended up far away from his human home, he had given up on finding family, his head throbbed painfully as he tried to recall details, he remembered seeing a dragon, a human woman being taken and grabbing a hold of them before landing in water, he remembered the cold. He remembered another man, he had a hook for a hand and a stick for a leg, he used to make things, the boy remembered curiously watching.

"You're really alive?" Stoick asked carefully "Oh, Odin above! My son lives!"

Hiccup let a half smile fall on his face, he couldn't do anything else at the sheer happiness spreading from the man in front of him, even if his memories were hazy, he had them, he knew the man in front of him was not lying.

The other Vikings arrived quickly, spreading behind Stoick and glaring at the boy angrily, eying there unconscious companions suspiciously.

"Boy, drop the knife and surrender yourself properly, we don't want to hurt you." Egil warned carefully, the blonde Viking watched the boys movements carefully before glancing at Stoick and freezing, the chief was actually smiling.

"Calm down," Stoick gestured with his hand "This boy is no threat to us."

"And How do you figure that? He was clearly a threat to them!" One of the men shouted, Hiccups hold on his knife tightened as he widened his stance, watching his opponents closely, although his stance did remain defensive.

"Cause that's my son your pointing your weapons at!" Stoick barked angrily, annoyed at the lack of trust from his men "Put them away, now!"

The men complied, Hiccup waited for the last weapon to be sheathed before returning his knife to the holster above on his lower back.

"The Chief's boy?" One of the men whispered "Hiccup?" Followed after quickly.

Egil glanced at Stoick then to the boy, it didn't take long to recognize, that what Stoick said was true, as similar to Valka as the day he disappeared.

The boy straightened awkwardly, suddenly under so much attention "Uh, Hello?" He let out slowly, he hadn't dealt with many humans who weren't openly afraid of him.

The men broke in laughter suddenly, someone they know had just taken out four Vikings single handed, beaten Spitelout in a duel was suddenly nervous, just because of some attention.

Stoick chuckled and walked over to the boy, placing a hand lightly on the boys shoulder "I'm sorry I didn't go after you, we all just assumed you were well…dead."

Hiccup nodded, surprisingly understanding "It's, uh, okay?" He didn't talk much, everything he said came out as a sort of question, as though he wasn't sure if he was saying the right words.

Stoick smirked and nodded "I hope you a fast learner lad, you've got a lot to catch-up with."

Hiccup could only nod, slightly confused as to what his 'dad' had planned for him, the word still felt weird in his mouth, his eyes widened in slight realization when the man attempted to lead him towards the village and he backed away slowly, his face representing his internal struggle.

Hiccup closed his eyes and took a breath "I want to retrieve a few things first."

Stoick watched the boy curiously before a loud bell sounded in the distance, Stoick snapped around and could barely make out the silhouette's of dragons in the distance.

"And you need to defend your own pack," Hiccup reaffirmed with a nod "I know the way, I will meet you there."

Stoick looked at his son in confusion, the boy called the clan a pack? Although he didn't have time to dwell on it as the other men took off towards the village, he followed after as Hiccup darted into the thicket, if the boy could survive this long on his own, Stoick figured he could trust him to retrieve some things and return to Berk.

* * *

Hiccup arrived in the cave he had been calling home for a long time and glanced around slowly, it wasn't that he was afraid to leave his familiar abode, a sort of giddy feeling flowed in his stomach, it gave him a nervous energy that surged through his fingertips, he wasn't entirely sure what it was called, but it wasn't unpleasant so he had no complaints.

Looking around the walls of the save he retrieved his smaller more important possessions, leaving the leathers and animal skins he used for repairs on the makeshift tables he had built over the years, it occurred to him that every mechanism he had ever built was because of his curiosity with the man who could bend metal with flames, he chuckled to himself as he opened a small chest, inside were three items, a small empty gold locket he had found one day at the beach, The second was a massive pouch, it jingled lightly as he lifted it, he grimaced it was quite heavy, the men he had chased off often dropped pouches similar to these, only they were much smaller, he had been informed by a merchant he allowed to pass that is was called 'money' and that it held a special value in the villages. Although he wondered how small chunks of different colored metal could possibly be valuable the man had not been lying to him, he would have known.

The third item was something he only ever held onto because he thought it was strange, it was a blade of a make he didn't recognize, it was short about the length of his forearm, it bent in a slight curve and the guard on the hilt was a wide oval unlike the T-styled cross guard of his dagger, a small dark red rope was tied around the bottom of the hilt, which was ornately stitched in a black thread, he'd never used it before, the man who had dropped it said it was a blade he had received on a trade in the east, but wouldn't say any more.

Hiccup lifted the blade slightly and it clattered as he moved it, taking his dagger and setting it down in the box, he tied the new blade around his back, the hilt sitting just under his elbow, he figured it was time to use it. He tied the pouch of money to his hip, pocketed the locket and made sure the blade was secure on his back before moving towards Berk.

* * *

By the time he had arrived, the dragons had been repelled, he walked through the town slowly, after a number of looks he pulled the face plate of his mask down to hide his face, a few sharp looks after that were all it took to quell the glances, Stoick, his father, caught sight of him and gestured for him to come over.

Hiccup did so quickly, even in the animal kingdom, animals respected their parent's wishes, at least until a certain age, although he doubted the same thing applied to humans, he was in no hurry to do anything that would make the pack of people angry at him.

"Take the helmet off for a moment boy," Stoick ordered, Hiccup complied after only a moment's hesitation, holding the thing under his arm "It's not often outsiders walk into Berk fully armed and armored, I am going to introduce you to everyone and explain the situation."

Hiccup nodded his head in understanding, he would be lying if he said the feeling from earlier hadn't changed, it was no longer happy, it was just simple nervousness, something he was familiar with and most certainly didn't like, he rubbed his hands together quickly and shifted his weight from foot to foot.

By this time, most people in the village had gathered in the centre of town, curiously eyeing the newcomer and whispered quietly amongst themselves.

"People of Berk," Stoick announced loudly, every pair of eyes shifted to him and Hiccup felt a minor amount of relief "I'm sure your all wondering who this is, why I let a newcomer into the village so easily, well there is a simple answer, he is not a newcomer, he is family."

The village collectively gasped, most gathering who Hiccup was from that alone "That's right, my son has returned and I am proud of the warrior he has become."

Stoick smiled happily, an action almost unnoticeable behind the large beard on his face, Hiccup could tell the man was pleased, pride welled in the boys chest at the realization, a small smile on his face.

"Aye, warriors the right term for it," Spitelout chuckled rubbing his jaw with a wince "My head still hurts."

The village took the news surprisingly well, only a small number of people remained in the square after Stoick dismissed everyone for a nights rest, the remaining set of people stared at Hiccup curiously, the boy felt a little unnerved by the people that seemed around his age, the boys eyed him almost angrily like they were testing him, the girls both seemed uninterested.

The only other person who remained he actually recognized, it was difficult to forget a person with a hook for a hand and a stick for a leg, Gobber smirked at the boy knowingly "Aye lad, I've not seen you since you were a wee boy, used to always go on about you'd be my apprentice at the forge."

"The 'forge'," Another word Hiccup was unfamiliar with "The place where you bend metal with fire?"

Gobber laughed "Aye, that'd be the one."

"Is the 'apprentice' position still open?" Hiccup asked, his voice raising a few octaves in excitement.

"Aye, it's still open for ya," Gobber replied, ruffling the boys auburn hair with his hook "It'll be master Gobber to you from now on."

The bearded man gestured to himself with his thumb and grinned widely.

Hiccup inclined his head "Master Gobber?"

The man faltered slightly "On second thought, just Gobber's fine."

Hiccup nodded his head, noticing the other people his age were now all eyeing him curiously, he walked towards them slowly, slightly nervous.

"Uh, Hello?" He said slowly, Stoick walked up behind Gobber as the adults moved away to attend to a few things.

The largest of the set of children stepped forward slowly, "Hi, I'm Fishlegs," The boy glanced at his companions and rolled his eyes, realizing none of them planned to introduce themselves, pointing to each of them in turn he spoke "That's Snotlout," Fishlegs introduced "You beat up his dad, he's still kinda mad."

"You did not beat up my dad, you caught him by surprise with a cheap shot!" Snotlout argued moving towards Hiccup angrily, attempting to loom over the skinnier teen.

Hiccup met the boys gaze flatly, if there was one thing he wouldn't ever be, it was intimidated "Your father and I fought honorably, I outsmarted because he underestimated me, there was no 'cheap shot'."

Snotlout took a surprised step back, he didn't remember his cousin being anything close to assertive, he might have even used the word 'scary' not that he'd ever admit that.

Fishlegs broke the two apart and Snotlout went to stand with the group "That's the twins, Ruffnut and Tuffnut." Fishlegs continued simply, pointing at the pair.

"That's not my name at all, I don't know what you're talking about," Tuffnut responded flatly "My name is Vincent Bonesnapper," He stepped forward and flexed, although it did very little "Feared by men, loved by women and nightmare to dragons everywhere!"

Ruffnut suppressed her urge to chuckle "Yes and my name is," She paused for a moment to think "Velvet Bonesnapper."

"Hey, your cool fake name sounds too much like my cool fake name change it." Tuffnut demanded quickly

"No, you change yours." Ruffnut responded stubbornly

"No, I came up with mine first, you just copied it." Tuffnut shot back.

Ruffnut ignored him "I am the fairest maiden in all of Berk." She placed a hand over her chest and batted her eyelashes at Hiccup, who merely rolled his eyes and Fishlegs slapped his hands over his mouth and retched.

"You're not half as fair as the girl beside you." Hiccup cut her off bluntly

Tuffnut began laughing, Ruffnut shifted a glare onto her brother and kicked him in the back, the unexpected force pushed him to the ground, he scrambled back to his feet as slammed his helmet against his sister "What?" He demanded

"Nothing." Ruffnut responded

"Then why'd you kick me huh? Mad cause it's true." Tuffnut shot at her.

The pair growled at each other and Fishlegs walked over and pushed them apart, placing himself in between them so they'd stop bickering.

"Last but not least," Fishlegs gestured to Astrid, who shot a fierce glare at Hiccup, apparently not at all flattered by his last comment "Astrid."

Hiccup glanced at the five in turn "Pleasure." He wasn't sure if that was the correct word, but he'd heard it before after introductions so he thought it would be best.

Stoick had apparently finished whatever he had been discussing with Gobber because the large man came over to the group and placed his hand on Hiccups shoulder, the boy turned his head to look up at his dad curiously.

"Time we ha home son." Stoick explained simply.

Hiccup nodded his head quietly, the large man moved and Hiccup fell into step behind him, neither spoke on the trip home, although Hiccup could feel the vehement glare on his back as he walked away, he turned back enough to look over his shoulder at the blonde axe wielder, he gave her a frown of confusion, one that was met with surprise as the non-verbal conversation ended.

'Maybe being fair isn't a compliment in human terms?' He thought in confusion, he didn't think it made any sense that the girl would insult herself, he shrugged, apparently he really did have a lot to catch up on.

Hiccup followed to a house atop a hill, the forest was only a small distance from the backdoor, Stoick pushed the door open slowly and walked inside, he sat down at an empty seat and slowly poked a fire back to life.

Hiccup sat down in the stagnant silence awkwardly, unsure of what to do.

"Your bed is upstairs, I don't know if I have any extra furs lying around, but you are welcome to take mine if you are cold." Stoick explained

Hiccup stared at the floor for a long second before he yawned tiredly, the day event's finally catching up to him "I think I'll be okay without the fur for a night. But I am tired."

Stoick nodded his head in understanding as the boy walked upstairs, the bed, at least he assumed it was a bed, was a small wooden frame with a straw mat atop it, he pushed down on the thing carefully, not entirely trusting it with his own weight, when the frame didn't even so much as groan in protest he fell onto it back first, it was quite comfortable, compared to the mound of dirt on a cave floor he was used too.

He found himself quickly falling asleep, flashes of memories replaying in his dreams over and over again.

* * *

 **A/N: What did you think? So, a few explanations if you're confused, time ways this takes place when Hiccup is 15, but he more closely resembles the Hiccup of HTTYD2 at least in armor, I'm going to put him at about the same height as Astrid too, the basic plot is Hiccup was old enough when his mother was taken to grab a hold of her, he ended up falling into a lake (Similar to where he meets' Toothless.) and unaware he is actually still close to his home, begins living on his own in the wild, his strength comes from watching wild animals and also having to survive, as the story goes on I'll bring him to a more standardized version of the Hiccup we all know and love, Stoick never finds him because he doesn't think to look around on Berk for his son that was carried off by a dragon, Hiccup himself never goes to Berk because he isn't sure how to deal with people (Which I hope I adequately displayed in this chapter.) But he doesn't like it when people just start trudging through his territory without asking him, as I tried to display with the Wolf. That should explain the more pressing questions, but if you've got any additional ones feel free to hit me with them.**

 **P.S I will most definitely be pairing Astrid and Hiccup (I don't know what it's shorthand is.) But it will be slower (Sort of.) Regardless I hope you enjoyed!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Well, I'm glad a number of people seem to be enjoying this story, to answer a few questions left in reviews, yes, Toothless will still appear and Hiccup will still become a Dragon Rider, while overall it will differ slightly from the film (and continuing series.) event's will be mostly the same. Secondly, answering a guest, Astrid react's coldly for two reasons, first and foremost, being she doesn't really like flirting (If Snotlout taught me anything about her it'd be that.) Second, Hiccup was thought dead, pops up out of nowhere and immediately proves a combat skill that rivals her own (Yes, he's going to rival Astrid in skill.) I figured her competitiveness would kick in. With explanations out of the way onto chapter two!**

 **'By the way characters thought will be written like this'**

* * *

Hiccup awoke to a brown unfamiliar wooden ceiling, a slightly sweet smell wafted to his nostrils from down stairs, he sat up and pulled at his armor lightly, the leather had stiffened slightly from the cold 'I'll need to get a hold of some skins soon.' He thought with a small grimace, he grabbed his helmet and moved downstairs, his father once again poked at a small fire, a pot of something bubbled over the top.

Stoick turned abruptly when he heard Hiccup arrive on the bottom floor of the home, he smiled widely "Hungry?"

Hiccup nodded vigorously, stomach growling for emphasis, Stoick spooned a helping of what could effectively called slop into a bowl and slid it too Hiccup, the boy peered down at the food for a moment, it smelled faintly of honey, he glanced at his father who was already eating and shrugged, lifting the bowl to his lips he tipped it back, the moment the food touched his lip he winced and moved it back down. He hadn't considered the heat.

Stoick chuckled "Hiccup, use a spoon, you're going to need _some_ table manners."

Hiccup stared at the small chunk of smoothed wood beside the bowl, watching his father for only a moment, he quickly figured out what he had to do, balancing the food on the small piece of wood he blew on it twice and placed it in his mouth. The food wasn't by any means extravagant, but it was delicious nonetheless, the boy finished quickly and wiped at his mouth with his sleeve, reaching behind him he drew out a small leather bound book. A compartment in the arm of his right hand popped open and a small stick with a chunk of charcoal tied to the end was pulled out.

Stoick watched the boy curiously as he drew a small symbol on the book, to the older man it seemed like he was taking notes on how to correctly eat breakfast, Stoick stared at the table in bewilderment, the reality that his son was quite literally a self taught child who grew up in a forest completely sinking in.

Hiccup seemed to notice his father distress, closing the book quickly he spoke "Dad, I am a fast learner, if you don't have time to teach me every little thing, bring me any book you think I'll need and I'll study myself, besides, observation will teach me enough anyway."

Stoick seemed calmed by his sons apparent confidence "You can read?" He asked curiously.

"I found a few books and was given others, I figured it out." Hiccup replied with a nod.

"Okay, well, you have already agreed to work with Gobber in the forge, you make your way over to it at anytime you're ready, the old man is also knowledgeable about dragons, I suggest you learn everything you can from him, the raids are getting more and more frequent."

Hiccup nodded slowly "About the raids, I've made a few observations already."

Stoick paused, curiosity peaked.

"I don't think Dragon's on their own are all that dangerous." Hiccup began, his father cut him off with a shake of his head.

"I don't have time for half baked theories, they began attacking us, study them because whether you like it or not they are an enemy." Stoick's voice echoed around the room loudly, firmly punching his belief into his sons mind leaving no room for argument.

Hiccup nodded his head in slow acceptance 'It still doesn't make any sense.'

He sighed, his roundabout thoughts weren't going to help him, he was eager to begin at the forge, he was already crafty because of the small memories he had of the place, actually learning the skill would open up completely new concepts to him.

Placing his helmet on he moved out of the front of his house, he passed by a few people, they gave him weak waves and small smiles, apparently his armor still made them nervous, he shrugged the reactions off mentally, he wasn't going to change it.

* * *

He found the forge relatively easy, Gobber's voice was hard to miss, Hiccup entered the shop quickly "The apprentice has arrived."

Gobber glanced at the boy calmly "Did your father no give you any normal clothes, you don't need to be walking around in armor all the time do you?"

"There are clothes under the armor," Hiccup replied with a shrug "Besides, it pays to be prepared."

"Whatever yee say lad," Gobber shrugged "Just take the helmet off, your head will melt if you don't."

Hiccup complied removing the headgear with a quick lift, although he had nowhere to immediately put it "You've got a workbench in the back, you can put in there and grab your apron, we have work that needs to be done and I don't have time to teach you more than once."

Hiccup nodded his head quickly, darting into the back of the store, he placed the helmet down at the edge of the large desk and retrieved the small brown apron from its hook on the wall, draping it over his head he tied it around his back quickly, he didn't understand the point of putting more leather over his armor but shrugged as he stepped back through the door.

"Perfect, now come here." Gobber waved him over.

"First thing you're going to do it work the bellows, nice and easy, making a good weapon is much like wooing a woman, all timing and effective control." Gobber explained

Hiccup frowned at the analogy, seriously doubting its validity. But he complied grabbing the handles of the 'bellows' he pumped them slowly, he took notice of the coals glowing slightly brighter evenly 'So this increases heat.' He concluded.

"Exactly like that, you go to fast you get a hot slap in the face, all about timing, keep the flame even so the metal will heat at the same speed all round." Gobber explained, Hiccup continued working the bellows until his arms groaned in protest, his physical condition never showing on his face.

"Perfect, now, grab a block of steel." Gobber commanded, Hiccup's eyes darted to the small pile the Gobber gestured too.

Hiccup grabbed the ingot of metal quickly, the bar was cool in his hands as he moved, Gobber handed him a wide metal bucket, Hiccup placed the ingot in the bucket and Gobber moved it over the coals "Keep the fire hot until the metal completely melts.

Hiccup suppressed a groan, he had agreed to become the apprentice, he watched the coals closely, giving the bellows a quick press every few minutes, he grabbed a large metal poker and tapped the side of the bucket, the metal fell more correctly into it. Gobber watched the boy from the counter, surprised at his natural knowledge of the trade.

Hiccup tapped the bucket again, the metal now correctly filled the bucket, but it remained silver, he was unsure if it was melted enough yet.

"The metal should resemble the coals it's on, that the tell tale sign you've reached the goal." Gibber explained.

Hiccup nodded pulling the Bellows again, he changed his tool, picking up the large tongs on the ground and moving them to a position he could more easily reach them, glancing around he found a stone plate, a slight furrow that resembled a blade in its centre, he glanced at Gobber for confirmation, the man nodded his head silently.

Hiccup eyed the thing closely 'The melted metal goes in here so it'll take shape, but I'll need to cool it, then hammer to make it correct.' He looked around, spotting a bucket of water he brought it over to the anvil, placing the mould and the bucket beside it he pumped the bellows again and glanced at the metal, the top had begun to bubble. 'the hilt of my dagger was leather, a standard sword will be much the same.' His elbow smacked against his own blade and it clattered, he shifted the design out of his mind for now.

Hiccup moved to a large pile of leathers at one end of the shop, taking a section he cut it into strips and placed them on a table top before moving back to the now molten metal, taking the tongs he moved the bucket of steel over the mould and gently poured the metal into it, it hissed as it met the cool stone and took shape, Hiccup grabbed the bucket of water and paused 'If I just dump this the metal will come out of the mould, looking around he found a small metal spoon, he grabbed it and dropped the water on slowly, the places the water touched began to harden, Gobber watched the boy curiously as he poured the water over the blade gently, when he was finished the steel had sufficiently cooled, he flipped the mold and the metal fell against the anvil with a loud clank.

He grabbed the hammer in his hand and lifted the metal, glancing down the edge he took note of the larger lumps in the metal, laying the blade flat he lifted the hammer above his head and brought it down hard, a loud clank rang out, he immediately picked the blade up and quickly examined it, he had hit too hard, causing a section of the blade to bend in, flipping the blade he brought the hammer down again, evening it out, he flipped and hit again, flattening each side of the blade before dousing it in water again, the metal finished cooling and he brought it into the light to inspect it, running his finger over the blunted edge he smirked to himself pride fully at his first attempt.

Moving over the leathers he bound the hilt and lifted it, giving it a quick roll over his wrist to test its balance, he nodded his head in approval.

"How do a sharpen it?" Hiccup asked enthusiastically the pain in his arms completely forgotten.

Gobber gestured to a large grindstone and Hiccup moved to it, taking a moment to get the wheel spinning he set the edge of the blade to it and moved the blade along slowly, going over each side carefully. The boy lifted the blade again, the sharpened edge glinted at him.

"You think you did well?" Gobber asked rhetorically, the boys pride was evident on his face, the next part almost hurt Gobber as he took the blade and brought it down on a sword he had finished earlier that day, Hiccups blade snapped under the blow and Gobber looked at the boy, who seemed surprise before understanding fell on his face.

"It was too thin." Hiccup looked at the blacksmith for confirmation, the man nodded his head, he had expected a more stubborn Viking response, but apparently being raised in the wild taught the boy hit and miss existed, he'd simply have to try again.

Hiccup gritted his teeth in annoyance as the second sword he created came out too thick and was much to awkward to lift and fight with, even if it didn't break.

"Would it kill you to give me some advice?" Hiccup complained, watching Gobber out of the corner of his eyes as he once again heated the metal, Gobber chuckled.

"I believe in learning on the job." He replied simply with a shrug.

Hiccup rolled his eyes as he stared at the metal as it slowly began to glow, moving it into the mold for the third time he cooled it and beat at it with a hammer, he lifted the sword and turned it on its side, it wasn't paper thin like the first sword, nor did it resembled the brick of a weapon he made on his second attempt. He cooled it and walked over to the sword Gobber had made earlier, not bothering the hilt he slammed the metal down on the sword, releasing a bit of his pent up frustration.

The metal resounded with a sold chink, Hiccup examined the blade calmly, still in once piece, no cracks had appeared, just a small knick in the side of the blade where it had struck the blade.

Hiccup threw his hands into the air "I did it! Did you see that, it didn't break!"

Gobber chuckled "Aye, that you did."

Gobber's tone made Hiccup pause, the small boy turned to the large Viking curiously, Gobber opened the counter on the forge, Hiccup's eyes widened in surprise at the sheer number of people lined up outside.

"Now you just need to do it," He paused as he glanced at the line "Thirty more times, give or take five or six."

Hiccup visibly slumped as he rubbed at his forehead, flicking the sweat into the ground "What is some of them want axes or maces or something?"

"Don't worry, I asked people who wanted swords to come today," Gobber flashed his palms to calm the boy "Axes and maces are another day."

Hiccup rolled his shoulders silently as he moved another ingot of metal over the fire, pumped the billow's and started on the hilt of the completely blade, after finishing it he moved the first blade to the counter, the Viking gripped it and swung it around himself slowly before placing the flat against his arm and examining it closely "A Fine blade Master Hiccup." The Viking nodded gratefully and walked away.

* * *

Hiccup managed to get the customers for that day out of the way in good enough time, it was just barely sunset when he had finished for the day, although his arms felt about ready to fall off, he had a triumphant smirk on his face.

"See, learning on the job, fastest way to it." Gobber nodded his head as he crossed his arms.

Hiccup's face screwed up as he watched the large man "Somehow I think there are easier ways to teach."

Gobber shrugged "None that I've found."

'Ah, Viking stubbornness, this is something I should most definitely get used to.' Hiccup thought with a grimace, Gobber looked out into the sky calmly "There won't be any attacks tonight. Close up and get some rest."

Hiccup watched the man leave curiously, wondering how on earth he could possibly know if the dragons would come back, he shrugged, placing it to years of experience and a hunch as he moved around the forge, he tidied the pile of leather, pulled the window on the counter closed and looked around, deciding he didn't want to leave quiet yet he moved back into his small workstation, laying out his journal he spread it out, looking around the room he found a small draw with stacks of blank paper in it, he tapped the makeshift pencil he had created against his chin as he moved back into the forge, grabbing one of the things Gobber had called a 'bola' he looked at it carefully, it's basic function was obvious, wrap it around a dragons legs, to weight it down, around its wings to stop it from taking off. He flipped it around his head and threw it, the thing clattered against a support beam of the forge and fell to the ground 'It doesn't go very far though.'

He moved back into his workshop and drew up a small plan, similar to that of a crossbow and a larger stand, he figured something that gives the bola's a stronger, faster flight would be helpful. He'd build it on nights like this and in his spare time, rubbing his chin carefully as he finished it off, he had a pretty good idea of how he'd go about it. He stretched his arms over his head and yawned, his back giving off a few resounding pops, he got to his feet and moved back into the forge, leaving the plan on the table for the next day, as he moved towards the door someone entered the forge with a quiet knock, although he noticed after he had already bumped into the person, the pair took a quick step back.

"Sorry." Hiccup sounded instantly.

The blue eyes that glared back at him were hard to not recognize, he suppressed the urge to sigh.

"Is there, uh, something you needed?" Hiccup asked politely

"Yes, my axe sharpened," Astrid responded curtly crossing her arms "But since Gobber isn't here I'll come back tomorrow."

"I can sharpen an axe," Hiccup called simply, the blonde turned to look at him curiously, he gestured for her to come inside with his hand as he moved over to the grindstone "Besides, you came here now to avoid a line right?"

The girl paused in the doorway, wondering how the boy in front of her could possible know that "Not entirely, I was training today, just happened to blunt my axe with a bad throw."

Hiccup nodded his head silently, moving his blade around slightly as he spun the grindstone and glanced at the blonde calmly.

The girl met his look calmly "What?"

"I'm gonna need the axe." The boy answered, holding out his hand, Astrid gave him one last calculating look before dropping the weapon in his hand, he flipped it around and placed the edge against the stone silently, the sound of stone grating on metal filled the forge as the pair waiting in silence.

Hiccup snuck a few glances at the girl, remembering their encounter when they were introduced, he wasn't sure what he did to make the girl dislike him so much, so he figured something he had said the night before must have been insulting in some way, or it was misunderstood.

"I'm sorry." He sounded over the noise of his work.

Astrid look at the boy in surprise "For what? It's not like you've done anything wrong."

"Huh?" He looked at her in confusion he turned the axe around "Then why are you so hostile towards me."

"Cause I don't like flirts." Astrid shrugged in answer.

"I don't know what that is," Hiccup's mouth twisted slightly as he nodded "I mean, I just wanted the other one to stop talking."

Astrid watched boy calmly, it didn't seem like he was lying and he hadn't said anything she would consider flirtatious since, maybe he was telling the truth?

"Look if I said anything that could be taken as an insult or misinterpreted, I'm sorry, I don't even know what 'fair' describes other than equal trade." Hiccup explained, moving the axe slowly.

"Oh, well fair kind of means beautiful when used to describe a girl." Astrid explained, Hiccup watched the blonde carefully in confusion.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but me calling you fair was a compliment then." Hiccup inclined his head slightly as he raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Yes." Astrid answered with a nod.

"And that made you angry?" Hiccup asked

"Again, yes." Astrid answered with a now.

"Why?" Hiccup asked, confusion still evident on his face.

"Because, I'm a warrior, I'm not 'fair', I'm supposed to be intimidating, strong, those are compliments I'd rather hear." Astrid replied flatly

"Okay, why can't you just be fair and strong?" Hiccup asked

"I…" Astrid trailed off, unable to find a solid argument.

Hiccup got to his feet slowly, handing her axe to her "I happen to think you are quite beautiful, but I can also tell that you keep good care of your weapon, Gobber said the mark of a real warrior is how well they treat their weapon," Hiccup smiled "I think you're a good warrior too."

Astrid colored lightly, something about the completely innocent smile and the words triggered something in her the back of her mind, she averted her gaze and brought her axe in front of her, pretending to inspect it as she shot the boy stealthy glances as he moved into the back of the shop, he came back out with his helmet under his arm and his apron off.

"Thanks for sharpening this." She spoke so quietly he almost didn't catch it, almost, before darting off into the dark of the village.

Hiccup frowned as he put his helmet on, she wasn't hostile this time, which he counted as a plus, but she did sort of run away from him 'Maybe it's a human thing.' He thought with a dismissive shrug.

* * *

He arrived back at Stoick's home relatively quickly, the large man sat a plate of food on the table as Hiccup took a seat, Stoick watched his sons expression change a number of times as he thought, confusion, consideration, back to confusion until finally dismissal.

"Dad," Hiccup sounded calmly, the man raised an eyebrow in acknowledgement "I don't understand girls."

Stoick suppressed the urge to break in laughter "I don't think any man can lad, but more importantly, first thing you should study."

Stoick slid a small book across the table, the title 'Dragon Manuel' etched into the front "Everything we know about every dragon we know of, it'll be important for you to learn."

Hiccup nodded his head as he grabbed the book "You start Dragon Academy next week."

"Dragon Academy?" Hiccup asked

"A school run by Gobber, teaches the younger ones who to fight Dragons." Stoick answered concisely.

"So, he drops us in an arena with a dragon and hopes it goes well, great." Hiccup sounded sarcastically, knowing the man's motto of learning on the job.

Stoick chuckled "heh, you'll get used to it." The large Viking responded before retiring to his bed, Hiccup brought a candle upstairs and placed it on his bedside, he mentally kicked himself for forgetting to grab a fur as he opened the book and began studying up on Dragons.

* * *

The week passed relatively quickly for the boy, he still found humans difficult to deal with, preferring to work in silence, Astrid didn't stop by to have her axe sharpened again, axes and maces turned out to be much easier to make than he originally though, only screwing up the axe a single time, the maces pass basically a chunk of metal, almost no thought was necessary to make it at all.

Two nights before he was going to start the academy he finished his bola slinging contraption, he fired it in the main square a number of times, making sure it flew straight and the calibration was correct.

He smirked to himself as he wheeled the contraption back into the forge, as he arrived he heard another soft knock at the door, turning his head enough to see who was standing in the doorway he gestured with his head for them to come in.

Astrid entered slowly, axe slung over her shoulder, Hiccup gestured for her to hand him the axe silently, she complied and handed the weapon to him. He ran his finger over the edge of the weapon, it was considerably blunted, more so than the last time she had brought it to him, the thing didn't even knick his finger as he moved it over the blade, setting it against the grindstone he moved it along slowly, glancing at Astrid curiously, she shifted from foot to foot nervously, twirled a loose strand of hair around her finger and generally avoided looking at him.

"Am I making you that uncomfortable?" Hiccup asked curiously with a chuckle.

"What? No, I was just praying you don't ask how I let my axe get so-." She cut off, almost spilling the beans on her nervousness.

"Dragon Academy starts soon correct, even I've been training for it." Hiccup chuckled "But you did let the axe get bad."

Astrid moved her shoulders in a sort of acceptance "I…got excited and may have, neglected it…a little, but I still sharpened it sometimes with a normal stone, I just left it a little too long." She explained slowly.

Hiccup nodded his head and smirked in acceptance "Nobody's perfect."

Astrid glanced at the machine he made, eager to change the subject of her neglect of the weapon "So what's that for?"

Hiccup glanced at the aptly named Bola slinger and smirked "I built it, it'll help out with all dragons in general, but that one there, it's built specifically to catch a Nightfury."

Astrid watched the boy, clear shock on her face "No, that's a really bad idea, Nightfury's aren't just a run of the mill dragon, they're, they're…" She trailed trying to find the right words to describe them.

"The unholy spawns of lighting and death itself?" Hiccup finished for her.

"Exactly, it's suicidal to think about capturing one, much less killing it." She exclaimed

"I'm kidding okay, the likelihood of that thing hitting a Nightfury is like a million to one, you can't even see them in the sky." Hiccup chuckled

Astrid pursed her lips together and gave the boy a light punch in the arm, he rolled the appendage and winced, reminding himself never to get on her bad side.

He handed the axe back to the girl when he finished sharpening it with a warm smile "I'm pretty much here all the time, if you need it sharpened more often you can wait in the back room while I do it you know."

She nodded her head gratefully "M-maybe I'll take you up on that." She mentally slapped herself for her stutter, now convinced there was some form of witchcraft in the boys smile that caused this reaction.

* * *

The night after was the first time Hiccup saw a Dragon Raid in person, he was working overtime in the forge to try and keep weapons repaired, he glanced out the window of the place, as a fireball smashed into a cart, shattering the wooden vehicle to pieces, fire spreading to the nearby homes.

The other teenagers moved quickly, dousing the fire and ducking behind stone buildings to keep from being burned alive, even if the efforts of their fire extinguishing were in vain.

"Gobber, I'll leave this to you, I'm going to help." Hiccup sounded as he tossed the man a sharpened sword.

Gobber snapped to the boy to order him to get back in the forge to help, but he was already outside ducking fireballs and bolting down the street, Gobber handed the sword to the man in front of him and moved through the forge quickly, grumbling something about stubborn Vikings.

Hiccup ducked low as a Nightmare flew over his head, the beast almost completely ignoring him as an arrow was shot at it, bouncing off the armored scales uselessly, Hiccup's head snapped up as a large man leapt from the roof of a home, forcing the beast to the ground and slamming it's mouth shut, other Vikings moved around the beast and netted it.

Stoick wiped his beard calmly as he looked around himself quickly "What have we got?"

"Nightmares, Nadder's, Gronkle's and Egil spotted a huge Zippleback." Spitelout explained quickly.

"Any Nightfury's?" Stoick asked

"None so far." Spitelout asked

"Good," Stoick nodded his head "Watching the dragon's above him for a moment he spoke, they are trying to get at the western barn, head over there and hold them off, we'll counter-attack with the catapults."

"Aye sir!" The Vikings sounded in cry, charging off, a few men followed behind Stoick.

Hiccup vaulted a fallen beam as he made his way to the vantage he'd set up his Bola slinger, he was eager to test it in actual combat, even if the dragon attacks still confused him, he wasn't about the let them break a home he wasn't even used too yet.

He stomped hard on the wooden platform, with a click the mechanism snapped up, the large crossbow like weapon creaked slightly as Hiccup loaded it. His eyes scanned the sky for a moment, he spotted his dad on the large catapult as it was fired, taking a number of dragons out.

A Nightmare lit itself on fire and moved towards the massive Viking, who simply grinned at the minor challenge in front of him, flipping a hammer in his hand, he slammed the weapon against the beast, it let out a pained hiss but was otherwise undeterred, Stoick followed up with an immediate set of blows, the dragon wobbled slightly at the continued onslaught, it's mouth snapped open and fire shot towards the large man, he ducked forward and speared his body into the beasts neck, taking it off the catapult entirely, rolling over his shoulder as he popped back to his feet.

The dragon growled at him, attempted to spit another burst of fire at him, a small trickle of pitiful flame leaked from its mouth and Stoick grinned "You're all out." He threatened darkly, before a faint whistle caught his ears, the Nightmare took off as Stoick turned his head to the sky, barely making out the fast moving streak of black against the stars.

"Nightfury!" He bellowed the men on the catapults, dived off the contraption as a shot of purple fire slammed into the side of it, an explosion rocked the weapon and it lurched dangerously to the side.

Hiccup's eyes narrowed as the black dragon flew passed the explosion of its own fire, he got a solid view of its path after it hit its target. He drew the bola slinger around and waited, convinced the dragon would come around to finish the catapult off.

As expected he heard the faint whistle over his head, he ducked down at the beast flew right over the top of him on its path, he lifted his head and drew the weapon around, the second explosion sent the catapult into the sea, not before Hiccup watched the dragon's turn and snapped the weapon forward and pulling the trigger, the bola whipped forward, Hiccup eyed the thing until he could only see the black if the Nightfury against the stars, a loud growl sounded with a resounding snap, Hiccup watched the Nightfury slam somewhere in the forest, tree's snapping at its impact.

"Yes! Yes! Did anybody see that?!" He turned around, realizing he was on his own on his vantage, he shrugged and made a face as he heard the splintering of wood, whipping his head around his jumped back as a Nightmare attempted to bite him, drawing his blade instantly he placed it along his forearms and met the beasts eyes with a glare.

The Monstrous Nightmare growled at him as its entire body lit with fire, Hiccup gritted his teeth in annoyance as he dived out the way of the advancing beast, dropping off the edge of his vantage he landed on a tiled roof with a loud thud, he rolled to his feet and darted along the roof, before jumping off, the Nightmare followed flying over the top of him, he shrunk his body against the side of the home as the beast's claw perched right above him, he held his breath, the Nightmares head began turning slowly towards him before someone let out a loud cry, Hiccup's head snapped down to see Astrid charging the dragon, he rolled his eyes as he moved around, launching himself at her, the Nightmare's head snapped around launching a fireball behind the boy, he could feel the heat of the fire against his feet as he collided with Astrid, forcing her to the ground as the fireball flew over the top of them.

Hiccup's back steamed slightly as his head snapped back to the dragon, the beast let out a growl and took off, flying away without trying to kill either of them. He frowned before someone's muffled yelp caught his attention.

He looked down to realize he was obscuring Astrid's ability to shout with his forearm over her mouth, the daggers she was glaring at him indicated she was most definitely not pleased with his intervention.

He got up abruptly and brushed himself off, Astrid continued to glare at him "What was that?!" She demanded angrily

"It had one more shot left," Hiccup replied flatly "Why do you think I wasn't fighting it."

"We dodged it and you just let it go." Astrid flared.

"Did you have a great idea for bringing it back down?" Hiccup shot at her, she questioned and averted her eyed, "We had no way to stop it from flying away, just be glad it didn't kill us."

"Thanks, for pushing me out of the way." Astrid spoke softly, for whatever reason it seemed like it was the way she always thanked him, before darting off.

Hiccup rubbed at his face tiredly, letting out a yawn he was eager to get to bed and sleep off the hectic night.

"Hiccup!" Stoick's voice boomed.

The boy cringed slightly at the tone "Uh, yes dad?"

"Gobber told me you abandoned the forge to 'help'." Stoick watched the boy turn around slowly

"Help with what, weapons are important, without you there helping with repairs men can die." Stoick almost growled, clearly displeased.

"I figured since I am starting tomorrow I should try to learn about what I am fighting first hand," Hiccup replied "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

Stoick took a long breath "Go on home now lad, it's not a problem, Gobber handled it well enough."

Hiccup nodded gratefully, when he arrived in his bed, now actually covered in a thick bear fur, he had a feeling he had forgotten about something incredibly important.

* * *

 **A/N: Dun, du, DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN! And with the next chapter, we will be meeting Toothless, hope your enjoying this so far and another thing I wanted to answer, a few people said Hiccup and Stoick had very little reaction to finding each other again after so long as well as how Hiccup's own back story isn't really explained, as the story goes on you'll find out a little more about how Hiccup learned to survive, among other things. Second, Stoick never strikes me as overly emotional, finding his son made him incredibly happy, but it isn't something he shows on his face, even when he finds Valka in the second movie, he wavers very little in front of her (In my own opinion.) So I basically Kept to that strategy, well I hope you enjoyed guys and I'll see you in the next one, peace!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Okay, we are in the meatiest chapter of meatiness (I don't know.) I'm nervous about this chapter in all honesty, I mean, I've written enough that I think I'm safe to call myself experienced, but in every story there's always** _ **the**_ **chapter, the one where your either recreating something completely awesome or trying to make a moment from scratch and I don't think any amount of experience would allow you to avoid the nervousness of these chapters. So, I really hope you enjoy this chapter and hit me with your thoughts when you're done (By that I mean arbitrarily tell me I did good whether you like it or not cause reasons.)**

* * *

Hiccup shot upright in his bed suddenly, he breathed heavily as he looked around, he shook his head, shaking the images of Astrid's charred corpse from his mind 'That's a hell of a nightmare to have.' He thought to himself as he grabbed his helmet and moved through the backdoor onto the grass, the incredibly cool morning air practically froze the thin sheen of sweat that covered his body as he looked at the forest, his eyes bulged as he recalled exactly what he had forgotten about in his tiredness the night before, darting through the bushes into the forest he pulled his helmet over his head as he moved through the brush.

The boy came to a slow stop as he looked around, he wasn't entirely sure where the Dragon had gone down in the dark, so his eyes scanned the surrounding tree's and forest floor for irregularities, he found what he was looking for in the form of Wolf tracks, he turned around and stared through the tree's he could still see the edge of the village from where he was no way a pack would wander this close to a human settlement unless they were really scared.

He figured out which way the wolves had gone and moved in the opposite direction deeper into the forest.

It didn't take long before he found what he assumed was the dragon's first point of landing, judging by the snapped tree's and dark trench of sundered earth. He slid down the trench and moved behind a rock, there was no guarantee the dragon was even still confined, he glanced around the edge of the large stone, he the tail of the Nightfury before anything else, the fin on one side spread out widely, as he continued around the rock the rest of its body came into view, the smooth black scales the impressive wing span, it let out long breaths and occasional growls, it's feet kicking at the confines of the ropes tied around it.

Hiccup stopped and stared at the beast calmly, he stepped over the tail and continued towards its head, he ducked under the wing and was met with the bright green narrowed eyes of the dragon in front of him, Hiccup stiffened and lowered hand resting on the hilt of his blade, the staring contest between human and dragon lasted a few moments, Hiccup lifted his hand and removed his helmet slowly, tossing the thing aside.

The dragon's demeanor didn't change, it's eye remained trained on his, a growl of complaint moved through its mouth and Hiccup drew his weapon slowly, the dragon seemed to recognize the boys intention, the pupils in its eyes widened ever so slightly and Hiccup paused, he took a long breath and closed his eyes, attempting to better read the feelings of the animal in front of him, he placed a hand on its neck, the dragon's scales moved ever so slightly against his touch and the animal growled.

Hiccup couldn't read anything he didn't expect, it was the same as a corner wolf, fear, worry and when the boy moved away from the best it's head lulled to the ground in acceptance. Hiccup stared at his hand, mostly disgusted at himself, he was aware that the dragon's behavior didn't make since, he took another step back and moved to turn around before pausing, glancing back at the expanse of jet-black scales, his face screwed up in consideration for his safety as he darted back to the beast, moving the blade beneath the ropes he cut it quickly, pausing for only a moment to examine the knife he hadn't actually used on anything yet, when he cut the second rope he heard the dragon shift and his eyes met its bright greens again. It stared at him in curiosity, Hiccup steeled himself silently as he cut the last rope, the Nightfury felt the rope around it slacken and it tackled the boy, slamming him against the rock and glaring at him angrily.

Hiccup met the gaze flatly, doing everything in his power to prevent fear from showing on his face, the dragon opened its maw and lifted its head back, Hiccup tilted his head to the side and winced, waiting for a fireball to end his life in the center of the forest, before the front paws of the dragon landed on either side of him and he simply let out a loud roar over him before taking quick hop into a glide, Hiccup lifted his head in time to see the dragon slam into a rock and fall back down into the forest somewhere, he retrieved his helmet and blade and put them away.

His eyes drifted to the sun now well over the horizon, he realized with a start he was meant to be at dragon training, with one last glance at the direction the dragon had gone he darted back through the forest.

* * *

Hiccup made much better time coming back, simply because he knew where he was going and he didn't have to try and avoid being eaten, he passed very few people on his way to the arena, they waved at the chiefs son quietly and he didn't slow, his mind on other things than the impressions he made on the people around him.

The first was why, why hadn't the dragon killed him, the Nightmare from the night before also had the opportunity, both dragons had simply flown away, well the Nightfury was more crashed away but the question remained.

Second was what he was going to do, there was a Nightfury roaming around the east side of the island, if the other Vikings caught wind of it the dragon would be killed without question, so he had to keep it a secret.

Third was the most difficult, if he didn't actually try in dragon training his dad would hear about it from Gobber and that would most definitely arouse suspicions, he ran a hand over his mask in annoyance as he slid to a stop in front of the other teens silently, they regarded him with a simple nod but otherwise remained silent.

'I still don't know enough about this,' he thought to himself as his eyes trailed over the forest, Gobber arrived shortly after to open the gates of the arena.

Hiccup trailed a short distance behind the other teens, still lost in thought, he directed his hearing outwards to try and catch anything that might be important, he heard Astrid take a deep breath and whisper something although he couldn't quite make out what it was, the other teens were easy enough to hear.

"I hope I get some serious burns," Tuffnut grinned "I'm hoping for some mauling on my left shoulder or lower back." His sister chimed in.

"Yeah, it's only fun if you get a scar out of it." Astrid sounded as the group looked around at the cages, excitement clear on their faces.

Hiccup remained silent as he looked around, still in two minds at exactly how he should play out these classes. His hand came to rest on the hilt of his weapon slowly.

Snotlout noticed Hiccup's movement and drew attention to him "What, dragon got your tongue? You aren't excited, what have you even got behind your back?"

Hiccup drew the blade and held it against his arm "It's a weapon you imbecile, not going to be able to kill a dragon without one am I?" He growled out flatly.

The group stared at the boy in surprise, he hadn't ever really insulted any of them before, the action caught them off guard, Hiccup's emerald eyed glare turned on them slowly, each turned away quickly, save for Astrid who eyed the boy curiously.

"Now, behind these doors are just a few of the many dragon species you will learn to fight," Gobber introduced, the cage behind him shifted slightly under the weight of the dragon within it, a shrill shriek coming from inside "The Deadly Nadder."

"Speed eight, armor sixteen." Fishlegs informed excitedly

Gobber continued, each dragon seemed to press on its cage as he moved past it, hoping for release "The Hideous Zippleback."

"Stealth plus twelve times two." Fishlegs cut in again.

"The Monstrous Nightmare." Gobber gestured to the cage.

"Firepower fifteen." Fishlegs seemed even more excited with each dragon.

"The Terrible Terror." Gobber paused beside a lever.

"Attack eight, Venom twelve." Fishlegs exclaimed.

"Would you stop that!" Gobber shot at the teen in annoyance "And the Gronkle."

"Jaw strength eight." He whispered to Hiccup, who glanced at the larger teen uninterestedly.

Gobber placed his hand on the lever slowly, Snotlout stepped forward "Whoa, whoa! Wait, aren't you going to teach us first?"

Hiccup actually mouthed Gobber's response in perfect sync "I believe in learning on the job." Gobber chuckled pressing the lever straight down, the cage burst open as the small Gronkle exited it and hovered about the group of teens as the scattered.

Hiccup eyed the field slowly, darting to the small stacks of weapons in the corner he pulled a shield over his arm, he heaved slightly as the things weight descended on his arm 'Well, dodging overrated anyway.' He thought to himself wryly as the other teens gathered their own shields at Astrid's prompt.

"Each dragon has a limited number of shots, how many shots does a Gronkle have?" Gobber asked as he picked something out of his teeth with his hook.

"Five?" Snotlout offered uncertainly.

"No, six!" Fishlegs waved his shield in the air as he exclaimed.

"Correct, that's one for each of ya." Gobber responded simply.

Fishleg's seemed to be about to add something when a fireball zipped over his head, shattering his shield.

"Fishlegs your done." Gobber announced, the boy hung his head and slumped as he walked over to the one legged Viking.

Hiccup glanced at the remaining members, of everyone present Astrid was the only one even close to being able to take on dragons aside from himself. So, he simply needed to put the dragons in positions that give Astrid an easier time, make her look better without looking bad and avoiding suspicion.

A fireball flew over his head, he heard the sound of a shield shattering, realizing the twins were still arguing over a shield as he moved.

"Ruff, Tuff, you're out." Gobber told the bewildered teens quickly.

Astrid watched the Gronkle quietly hopping from foot to foot, Snotlout stuck a small distance behind her.

"Those shields are good for another thing, noise," Gobber opted to give them a simple tip "Make lots of it to throw off a dragons aim."

Hiccup slammed the hilt of his sword into the centre of his shield, the sound echoed around the arena loudly, as the Gronkle turned towards him, he nodded to Astrid who silently charged forward, Snotlout seemed to be aware of the strategy and he darted after her, either that or he was just trying to stay as close to Astrid as possible, Hiccup didn't much care.

The boy found the shield on his arm had gotten lighter as he got used to it, he could more effectively move now as he darted forward, sliding underneath the Gronkle he kicked upwards, the dragon growled in annoyance as Hiccup jumped to his feet continuing at a dead sprint, his head shifted back in front of him in time to see Snotlout in front of him, Hiccup's eyes widened as he forced his body to dive the right, a fireball slammed into Snotlout's shield.

"Snotlout your done." Gobber announced, Snotlout tossed his mace into the ground and groaned in frustration.

Hiccup barely managed to roll to his feet from the sudden change in momentum, a fireball caught the edge of his shield and the thing slid from his arm, he glanced at the Gronkle and the to his shield, making a snap decision he darted towards the shield.

The Gronkle watched the boy closely, leaning forward it flew after him, Hiccup got a hold of the shield and jumped into the air, placing his entire body behind it as the fireball left the Gronkle's mouth, the explosion sent him flying as the shield splintered around him, he flipped over quickly and slid to a stop, glancing up in time to realize the dragon was a few meter's from him with its mouth open, his eyes widened for a moment before a hook caught around the side of the things mouth.

"That was six," Gobber groaned as he dragged the heavy dragon around and it gnawed on his mission arm "Go back to bed you overgrown sausage." He scolded as he tossed the thing back into its cage.

Hiccup clenched his fist angrily as he stalked towards Snotlout "Of all the stupid, inconceivable things you could have done, what possessed you to run _right_ in front of me!" He grabbed the boys vest angrily and dragged him forward, eyes flashing as he let out a low growl.

'I'm sorry, I looked away for half a second and you were already in front of me, it's not my fault you can run so fast!" Snotlout challenged angrily.

Hiccup's eyes only narrowed as he pulled back his fist, the limb was caught roughly and his glare turned onto the face of Gobber "Let go." Hiccup ordered angrily.

The other teens froze, it was the first time they'd seen the boy not polite, they decided an angered Hiccup was something they most definitely wanted to avoid in the future.

"I know your angry but this is training," Gobber responded flatly, meeting the teens look unflinchingly "Hopefully everyone will avoid mistakes that would put there fell Vikings in danger from now on."

Hiccup took a deep breath and let go of the boys collar.

"Well, here's one thing you learned today," Gobber announced, every pair of eyes turned to him "A dragon will always, _always_ , go for the kill."

He prodded Hiccups chest with his hook for more emphasis.

Hiccup's face twisted into confusion as his thoughts drifted to the Nightfury and before that the Nightmare, he glanced at Astrid who was giving him a concerned look, he mistook it for pity and turned away from her and stormed off, she tilted her head in slight confusion at the boys back. Hiccup retrieved his sword and sheathed it as he left, not even saying a word to any of the other teens as he walked away.

"What's his problem?" Tuffnut questioned

"Maybe he had a rough night, it was his first dragon raid after all." Gobber shrugged, most of the teens accepted that as a good enough excuse.

* * *

Hiccup crouched over the rocks and rope that was the bola he had cut that morning "Always go for the kill huh?" He said to himself wryly, his mouth twisting into a grimace.

After he had calmed down he had mentally reprimanded himself for getting angry at Snotlout, he was already aware of the groups skill, it was his mistake not paying attention to where he was going.

He grabbed the sides of his head in exasperation as he groaned, he had a feeling Astrid was aware he was acting strange, in hindsight allowing himself to get angry and let all of his instincts take over like that so easily is bound to arouse suspicion. His eyes trailed over a few small jet-black scales and he bent down to pick them up, pushing the issue of his behavior around the humans that day out his mind he moved to follow the trail of scattered scales. He shifted the small pack on his back so he could climb a rock, he perched in a little nook overlooking a lake, the scales led to here and then dropped off.

He leaned forward a little more as a black blur let out a roar and startled him back, he landed with a sot thud as the beast scratched at the smooth rocks above him trying to free itself from the confines of cove. It failed, gliding back and landing in the dirt heavily, a fish hopped from the water in front of it and its head hovered over the water for a moment before it attempted to get a meal, that also failed.

Hiccup removed his journal and drew a quick sketch of the beast under him, his eyes once again focused on the tail it certainly seemed off, only one fin, but nobody had any information on a Nightfury that he knew, as far as he was aware he was the only human to ever see one and still be alive.

His pen rolled from his grasp and clattered down the rock, he winced when the dragon lifted its head to look at him, it let out a low warning growl and he got to his feet and retreated, being aware of the dragon's current disposition to him.

* * *

On his way back, he could hear the sound of someone rolling around, followed by loud thunks, he moved towards the sound curiously, eventually breaking into a wide clearing in which Astrid rolled around tossing her axe into the trunks of large trees, producing the sound he had heard earlier, the axe speared into a tree and she fell onto her back in exhaustion, as he head thudded against the cool earth she finally noticed his present, she let out a surprised yell and scrambled towards her weapon, back hitting the tree before who it was registered in her mind.

"That's it! New rule, you're not allowed to sneak up on me with the mask on." She complained, wrenching her axe free of the tree.

Hiccup let out a chuckle as he removed the helmet as he sat opposite her "I'm surprised I could sneak up on you at all." He responded simply.

"There are a number of external factors that helped you," Astrid huffed giving him a mock glare "Why are you even out here?"

"Uh," Hiccup quickly searched for a solid excuse "I was just checking out the place I used to live."

"Oh, still in one piece?" Astrid asked curiously paying no mind to his hesitation.

"Yeah," Hiccup nodded "It's still there."

"I'd like to see it sometime, get a little an inside look at the great Dragon boy of Berk!" She threw her arms into the air comically and Hiccup rolled his eyes.

"Yes, great." He responded sarcastically throwing his hand in the air in mock excitement.

"What was it like?" Astrid asked suddenly serious.

"What?" Hiccup questioned for clarification.

"You know, growing up out here, without any people around." Astrid gestured around the forest.

Hiccup thought about it for a moment as he looked around "Interesting, but without any people around might not be completely accurate."

"What do you mean?" Astrid asked, curiosity peaking at the information.

"It would have been a few years ago now," Hiccup began "There was this old crone, used to live out in the middle of nowhere near the bay on the opposite side of the Island."

"She taught me how to read, among other things, like how to control myself." Hiccup explained, Astrid tilted her head in confusion.

"When I get angry, I find it difficult to rely on things that aren't my instincts, like I don't trust my mine or body to make the correct decisions, it just over writes everything." He explained, rubbing his hands together slowly "Honestly, when I eventually regain control of my own head, I feel like I failed."

Astrid shifted closer to the boy as he spoke "So that's what happened with Snotlout and Gobber today right? You were angry at something?"

Hiccup nodded his head slowly "It wasn't as bad as it could have been, thankfully Gobber sort of understands my predicament, I explained this to him first, that's why he wanted me in dragon training, he was hoping to be able to make a more useable condition." Hiccup explained

"That explains why Gobber already had a solid excuse planned to convince the others," Astrid nodded her head slowly "Have you told your dad any of this?"

"Are you kidding?" Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at her unexpected proximity "He thinks I taught myself how to read and I survived completely on my own for eleven years, he doesn't even seem surprised by it, like it was what he expected from his own blood."

Astrid just rubbed at her forearms awkwardly "Are you gonna tell him?"

Hiccup sighed, his face contorting to reflect the state of his predicament effectively "I guess I'm going to have to at some stage, but I don't think now is the best time, after the trainings over I'll do it then."

"By the way, you had a number of chances to take out that Gronkle, why didn't you take them?" Astrid questioned, giving Hiccup a flat look.

Hiccup nervously chuckled " I thought I'd leave the honor you to you, milady." He flourished a mock bow and twirled his hand.

Astrid jerked back in slight surprise, she threw a light punch his way which he caught in his palm, she glared at him in annoyance.

"I've decided I'm only going to let you hit me if I deserve it," He chuckled, her other hand came up and he caught that as well before he added something with a devilish smirk "Milady."

The new tone coupled with the grin caused the blonde girl to color immediately, she jerked her arms free of his hold and grabbed her axe, avoiding meeting the boys ace "W-Well," He paused and cursed her stutter vehemently "I'm going to get back to it."

"Right," Hiccup nodded quickly, putting his helmet back on as the wind picked up "I'll see you tomorrow then." He waved as he walked away.

Astrid stole glance at his back as he sauntered off into the tree's "Yeah, tomorrow."

* * *

 **A/N: Oh, a shorter chapter, well mostly because I think a lot of information was covered in this one, Hiccup's had more contact with people than he lets on, anger is the trigger to his more feral instincts and he is more aware of the dragons strange behavior! Astrid's reactions are mostly to do with the fact that she has never had to deal with someone who's her physical equal at this point, I hope that you all enjoyed the chapter and I'll see you next time, peace!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:I actually meant to get this out yesterday but it seems the universe was conspiring against me, in the form of a windy of a tree falling on power lines and cutting power to my entire suburb for like twelve hours and it was 43 fricken degrees! (Celsius.) I spent the day half melting and wondering if that was how I was going to die, fortunately the power did eventually come back, but it was like four in the morning when it did and I was very much asleep at the time, but hey, more chapters!**

* * *

Hiccup pressed himself against a rock as he peered into the small cove he had found the Nightfury in the day before, glancing around slowly as he walked into the area, finding the dragon had apparently disappeared 'Did it finally fly away?' He thought when he heard something grate on the rock behind him, turning his head slowly and making no sudden movements he held a large fish out in front of him, the dragon's bright green eyes narrowed on him for a moment as it moved off of its perch, Hiccup took a deep breath as its nose lifted into the air in curiosity, sniffing at the dead fish, before it's eyes darted to his waist and it took a quick hop back, letting out a growl in his direction, Hiccup glanced down at the weapon curiously, keeping his movements slow and deliberate he untied the weapon from his waist and tossed it back into the cave he had exited, the dragon calmed the moment it felt no danger, it's pupils dilated and it hopped towards the boy, curiously smelling his clothing as it watched him.

Hiccup held the fish out towards the animal, it's mouth opened slowly revealing a gummed more suspiciously devoid of any teeth "Huh, Toothless I could have sworn you had," He cut off as a row of sharpened teeth clicked down and the dragon snapped the fish from his hand, the boy started and slipped falling onto his back with a heavy thud "Teeth." He finished almost silently as he rolled back to his feet.

The dragon tilted it's head towards him as it moved, Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at it moved towards him "Sorry, I only brought the one." He announced calmly.

The dragon paused, as if understanding, a strange noise escaped the dragon as it bobbed it's head, before a small section of half chewed, dragon saliva coated fish fell into the boys lap, Hiccup suppressed the urge to throw up as he watched the dragon carefully, it bobbed it's head forward and it's tongue snapped at its lip quickly.

Hiccup rolled his eyes as he lifted the piece of fish to his mouth slowly and bit into it, he winced at the feeling of the 'food' in his mouth, he made a quick hum "Mmm." He half smiled, forcing his body to not empty the contents of his stomach through force of will alone.

The dragon moved its head again and made a loud 'gulp' noise.

Hiccup paled and deflated slightly "Mmm," He hummed in annoyance before placing his fist against his chest and swallowing hard, he felt his body attempt to reject the food, he slapped a hand over his mouth and swallowed again "Ugh." He sounded in disgust.

The dragon watched him curiously, Hiccup let a small gap toothed smile fall on his face, the dragon watched the expression for a moment before its mouth opened slightly, what could only be described as a smile on the dragons face, Hiccup lifted a hand toward the animal slowly, it's teeth extended and it let out a growl, quickly moving to the opposite side of the cove away from him.

Hiccup sighed as he got to his feet 'baby steps then, okay.' He thought undeterred as he left the cove and returned to Berk.

* * *

He arrived in the square quickly enough, looking around at the people bustling around calmly as he made his way to the forge, he moved passed Gobber silently and into the back room, placing his helmet on his desk and retrieving his apron, he enjoyed the forge in the morning, it helped focus his mind on something other than all the contradictions between the dragons and what the Vikings had told him, he rubbed at his face and stretched as he made his way back into the forge.

Gobber and Hiccup had quickly fallen into an unspoken routine, Hiccup would move to the bellows and begin balancing the fire before as the older man took the more elaborate orders from the people at the front of the forge, Hiccup would then switch places with the blacksmith so he could fulfill those orders and Hiccup would take care of sharpening and hilt repair.

So when Hiccup sat down at the grindstone with a large axe in his arms, he was surprised when Gobber spoke "How are ye feeling today lad?"

"Better," Hiccup replied quickly "I don't think we will have a repeat of yesterday if that's what you're asking." He finished simply, the sound of metal on stone filled the air as Hiccup moved back to the counter and handed the man his axe, who examined the blade with a nod and sauntered off.

"Good," Gobber nodded "I know I said I'd help you with those wild instincts of yours, but I didn't expect something quite like that, you looked like you were about to seriously hurt your cousin."

"Just punch him," Hiccup shrugged "I doubt I'd go further than that, I do have a _little_ bit of control."

"Aye, still, fortune favors the careful." Gobber replied sagely, closing his eyes as he nodded.

Hiccup chuckled "Wise old man doesn't suit you."

"It could, I'm wiser and older than any other man in this village," Gobber countered throwing his interchangeable hand at the boy, the tongs hit the wall above Hiccups head with a light thud "You had best start calling me Gobber the wise!"

Hiccup laughed "The village is doomed if it takes 'learning on the job' as it's training method." He replied sarcastically, a hint of seriousness in his voice.

Gobber gave a hearty laugh and the forge settled back into a simple silence.

"Alright, I'll take care of the rest you had better be getting over to the arena, we've an interesting day planned." Gobber warned, simply winking at the boys confusion.

Hiccup nodded his head, retreating into his office he retrieved his helmet and placed the apron on the hook before leaving with a final wave to Gobber, the man waved his hook back as the boy left, turning back to his work.

* * *

Hiccup arrived at the arena, surprised to find he was the first there and the entire place was built to reflect a large wooden maze, he sat with his back against the wall, beside a long line of shields propped against the stone and closed his eyes, breathing heavily in an attempt to further control his mind and avoiding any incidents like the day before.

Apparently the gods wanted to test the boy.

"Oh, It's just wild boy," Hiccup's left eye cracked open taking in the appearance of the new arrival, Snotlout snorted at him, wiping his nose.

"Sorry about yesterday, I was…tired." Hiccup responded, it wasn't entirely untrue.

"Oh, no, it's fine," Snotlout started defensively "I mean, I understand not everyone can be on top of their game _all_ the time like I can."

Hiccup's open eye narrowed ever so slightly in irritation "Well, I hope we can avoid incidents like that in the future." He replied truthfully.

"Yeah," Snotlout pulled his arm over his head and stretched out casually "Right, another thing I figure I should tell you quickly."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow.

"Astrid and I are kinda a thing, so don't getting your hopes up too much." Snotlout announced cockily, pointing his thumb at himself.

Hiccup let a small smirk fall on his face.

"What, what's funny?" Snotlout asked, oblivious to the blonde walking up behind him, if her facial expression gave away anything, she had most definitely heard.

"What kinda thing would that be, Jorgenson?!" She demanded angrily.

Hiccup suppressed his laugh as the boy stiffened and then paled "Nothing, we're not any kind of thing, I wouldn't even call us friends." Snotlout spoke rapidly, the words tumbling out of his mouth in a constant fearful stream.

Astrid seemed satisfied as she moved passed the black haired boy she slammed the hilt of her axe into his stomach for good measure, Snotlout groaned and fell onto his side.

Astrid sat beside Hiccup quickly, removing a small stone she began sharpening the blade meticulously, eyeing Snotlout with a glare every now and again.

Hiccup suppressed a laugh each time the boy paled.

A few minutes after, Fishlegs and the Twins arrived. Each gawking at the large maze for a few seconds before moving over to join them.

"What happened to Snotlout?" Tuffnut asked curiously

"He said we were a thing." Astrid replied flatly.

"Yeah, the only one Astrid would want to be a thing with is Hiccup." Ruffnut teased

The girl's head didn't move and she continued sharpening her axe without responding, although Hiccup did hear her breath hitch ever so slightly.

"Wait, I'm confused, what thing?" Tuffnut asked watching his sister, the girl rolled her eyes and whispered something into her brothers ear, his eyes widened in realization "Oh, you mean how you want to be with fi-." A sharp elbow to the gut him off.

Gobber arrived before anyone else could speak "Today is about survival!" He announced loudly from outside the arena, drawing the teens attention, each of them quickly grabbed a shield as the man moved around the ring to a lever to one of the cages, a squawk from the inside indicated it was a Deadly Nadder.

Hiccup drew his knife slowly as he backed towards the entrance of the maze, Astrid only a step behind him, Gobber pushed the leave down quickly the cage snapped open and the dragon hopped forward, tail extending behind it as a volley of spikes flew at the teens, Astrid and Hiccup ducked into the maze to avoid them, the other teens blocked with their shields as they too entered the maze, the Nadder jumped onto the large wooden barricades and squawked down at them.

Hiccup rounded a corner and did a quick side step, Astrid stepped around the corner a moment after him and he grabbed her wrist, pulling her out of the way of a wave of fire quickly, she flicked her bangs out of her eyes and gave him a curt nod of thanks as the pair moved again, Hiccup's head watching the top of the barricades closely, the sound of another fire blast at the opposite end of the arena allowed him to relax slightly, but only for a moment as the twins raced around the corner at the opposite end of the small lane, Nadder fire cutting a path behind them, Hiccup glanced at Astrid for a moment before the pair split, Hiccup darting around a corner almost bumped into the burly form of Fishlegs, Astrid spun round Snotlout and continued passed him, the black haired boy followed after her closely, but far enough back she couldn't hit him.

Hiccup's head snapped up at the sound of a Squawk, Fishlegs moved passed him, the Nadder flung another volley of tail spikes at him, the stocky Viking blocked with his shield and darted around the corner, the Nadder's head train of Hiccup and the brown haired boy rolled his eyes in annoyance.

He dived to the left as fire incinerated the maze wall behind him, rolling to his feet he broke into a dead sprint, Nadder spikes painted the wall a hair's breadth behind him, he dropped into a slide to avoid the last few and dragged himself to his feet moving away from the best, the twins rounded a corner to find themselves face to face with the beast as Gobber spoke.

"Look for its blind spot, every dragon has one, find it, hide in it, then strike." Gobber explained, the twins froze, the dragon tilted it's head to the side and let out a confused squawk, wondering how the two Vikings had managed to disappear.

Ruffnut only managed to stay behind her brother silently for a moment "Ugh, do you ever bathe?" She kneed her brother in the back, the boy elbow backed

"It's not my fault, I'm letting my own personal musk set in." Tuffnut responded flatly

The pair continued to strike each other "If you don't like it why don't you just get your own blind spot?!" Tuffnut demanded

Ruffnut slammed her head against her brothers "How about I give you one?"

The pair split as the dragon spewed fire at them.

"A blind spot dragons have, a deaf spot, not so much." Gobber quipped chuckling to himself as he picked something out of his teeth.

Hiccup rounded a corner slowly, noticing Astrid and Snotlout crouched at the corner a little ahead of him he moved into a similar position behind him, Astrid peered round the corner carefully before whipping back and flattening her back against the wall, she glanced at the pair for a moment before nodding and rolling across the gap.

Snotlout followed and Hiccup peered around the corner, an action he quickly concluded was a mistake as the Nadder had heard Snotlout's roll and was looking at the corner as he did so, fire slammed into the wall where his head had been and he darted to his feet, disappearing back the way he had came, the Nadder's head came around the corner and Astrid readied her axe before Snotlout roughly pushed her aside.

"Whoa, watch out babe I got this." He boasted, flipping his small mace and tossing it, the weapon clattered against the wooden maze uselessly, the Nadder stopped for only a moment to look at the weapon before moving towards them.

Astrid just stared at Snotlout in disbelief, the boy glanced at her then at the dragon.

"The sun was in my eyes Astrid, okay? What do you want me to do block out the sun I can do that but I'm busy right now." His voice progressively got lower as he dodged out of the way of the fire blast, leaving Astrid to fend off the Nadder's attacks on her own, she ducked a weaved the deadly onslaught of attacks, the beast struck the maze with the blunt of its tail as it moved after her, Astrid darted up the now collapsing maze, landing on the top of a wooden barrier as it was unbalanced, Snotlout shoved passed Hiccup roughly and the boy struck the wall of the maze.

"Hiccup!" Came a loud shot of warning, Hiccup's head shot up as Astrid lost her footing on the maze wall and fell towards him, Hiccup sidestepped deftly and Astrid landed in his arms with a soft thud, axe blade hitting the ground with a metallic chink.

Astrid's eyes cracked open at the sound, she stared at Hiccup in surprise, she could see the smile on his face even through his mask.

"Dropping in?" He questioned playfully.

Astrid rolled her eyes and gave him a light back handed slap, it barely scraped against his chest piece as she pushed herself out of his arms and grabbed her axe, all the while fighting thoughts that would most definitely cause her to blush.

A squawk brought the attention of the pair back to the Nadder, Hiccup had dropped his blade when he caught Astrid, fortunately he still had a firm grip on his shield, he nodded to Astrid as the pair moved towards the dragon, he moved slightly in front of her locked against the shield as he eyed the dragon carefully.

It's tail snapped out spines flew at them, Hiccup battered them to the side and gestured with his head, the pair rolled out of the way of the follow up blast of fire, Hiccup slid to his knee and held the shield up like a platform, Astrid stepped off it into the air, bring the axe around the top of her head, Hiccup watched the dragon slowly, realizing it had already moved, he moved to Astrid's left and planted his feet on the upturned section maze, it's tail slammed into his shield and he was sent flying back, Astrid's axe missed the dragons nose by a hairs breath as Hiccup slammed into her side, the pair rolled to a crouched position as they landed, Hiccup winced as he heard the Nadder hiss at them, He stepped forward and spun, tossing his shield at the Nadder like a Frisbee, the shield intercepted the fire blast from the Nadder and exploded in its face, the animal squawked in pain as it pieces of metal and wood slammed into its face.

Gobber had entered the arena at some point and led the Nadder back to its cage, Hiccup stretched his arms above his head slowly, making sure nothing was broken, apart from some miner discomfort he concluded that at worst he'd have some bruising.

He turned to Astrid and held out his hand "Sorry, forgot about the tail."

Astrid took the offered hand slowly, now that adrenaline had worn off she was more aware of the boy next to her, her cheeks colored ever so slightly as she grabbed his hand and he pulled her to her feet.

"N-No, I did too so thanks." She internally growled at the damned stutter.

Hiccup removed his helmet silently and rubbed tiredly at his face, he looked at his hand after a moment, noticing a strange tingle in his fingertips, he frowned at the appendage and then look at the back of Astrid who was walking away from him and talking to Ruffnut about something.

'I didn't realize she was so…soft.' He thought, tilting his head to the side in confusion, 'Why am I realizing this now.' He shook his head roughly and placed the helmet back on his head as he left the arena.

* * *

The next morning he once again found himself in the Nightfury's cove, this time lugging a large basket of fish, he figured a larger serving might make the beast a little more inclined not let him stay long. He abandoned his blade at the entrance as he entered.

"Okay, Toothless," The dragon heard the voice and lifted its head at the boy as he set the basket down and kicked it over, fish spewed out of it "I've got salmon, some nice Icelandic Cod and a whole smoked eel."

The dragon took a quick sniff of the food before its teeth descended and a loud growl reverberated from its throat, he started and glanced at the eel, grabbing the thing by its tail he lifted it, the Nightfury let out a loud terrified shriek and Hiccup started.

"Okay, it's okay," He tossed the eel into the lake quickly "Yeah, I'm not much for eel either."

With the eel gone, the dragon began eating quickly, Hiccup moved around the beast slowly, getting a better look at the tail, he looked at the fin for a moment, at this distance he could tell that the fin had been severed in half by the crash, what he didn't know is how that would impact the Nightfury's ability to fly, he rubbed at his chin calmly, removing his journal he drew the other side of the fin quickly and pocketed the book, the Nightfury had finished eating and was now just eying him curiously.

It walked towards him and sniffed the inside of his pouch, nudging it with its nose, Hiccup glanced at where he had returned the book and pulled it back out, flipping to the picture of a Nightfury he showed it to Toothless slowly, the dragon looked at the picture curiously and sniffed, before concluding it didn't really care and it walked away.

It breathed a constant stream of fire into the ground and settled on the warmth slowly, laying it's head down and covering it with its tail.

Hiccup's curiosity got the better of him as he moved towards the dragon again, he reached for the tail fin slowly, before it moved down and the dragon gave him a low warning growl, Hiccup retracted his hand as if it had been burned and darted to his feet, walking away from the dragon.

Hiccup grabbed a long stick and sat down, removing his helmet he placed it on the ground beside him as he rested his cheek against his palm, he heard a tree groan and glanced at the Nightfury, currently dangling upside down like bat.

He chuckled to himself at the sight and began scratching against the dirt with the stick, first drawing the upside down Nightfury, he wiped it away with his boot after he had finished, he started scratching again, just the dragons head.

The dragon's ears twitched at the sound of the stick being scratched against dirt, it's eyes opened and it peered at the boy on the stone for a moment, before flipping around and moving towards him slowly, curiously peering over his shoulder.

Hiccup's nervousness didn't show as he continued scratching the image of the Nightfury, after a moment it seemed to get bored, he glanced around in time to see it walk off on its hind legs, another interesting sight that forced him to suppress a chuckle.

Toothless grabbed a hold of the branch it was sleeping on and yanked on it hard, it snapped away from the tree with a loud crack.

Hiccup watched the dragon curiously, as it moved back towards him, dragging the large stick through the dirt, it moved around him quickly, large spiral patterns opening in the ground, a set of leaves hit the back of his head and he ducked slightly, Toothless paused and made a small dot in the ground, it finished and placed the large stick against the ground, it's tongue flicked out over its top lip as Hiccup got to his feet, looking at the large scribble beneath him in surprise.

He moved to step out of it and his foot fell on the lines, a growl sounded and he lifted his leg quickly, glancing at Toothless, the growling stopped at a calm sound left the dragon, sound similar to a purr, he put his foot back on the line and it growled, lifted and the same purr, he set his foot back down and it growled again moving onto its front leg as if preparing to pounce, Hiccup smirked as he stepped over the line, moving through the drawing and avoiding stepping on it, he found himself at the edge, a sharp breath stirring the hair on the back of his head.

He looked up at the dragon, which peered down at him, with a slight turn of its head, Hiccup lifted his hand again, the dragon growled slightly and Hiccup retreated before the growling stopped quickly, however unlike the day before the Nightfury didn't immediately flee from him.

Hiccup took a quick breath and held out his hand, inclining his head slightly as he reached towards the dragon, he paused a few inches from it and the dragon glanced at him, then at the hand before leaning it's nose into his palm, Hiccup's eyes widened as the smooth scales met his hand, a small smirk fell on his face as he turned to look at the dragon, it's bright green eyes watching him. It shook it's head and snorted, his hand fell back to his side as the dragon moved away from him slowly, returning to the burnt patch of ground and laying down.

Hiccup stared at his hand and a grin form on his face as he left the cove.

* * *

He arrived at the forge a few moments late, having not left the cove as quickly as he had originally planned, he darted passed Gobber and pulled his apron on, tossing his helmet onto his desk quickly and replayed the events of the day before, he got the fire going quickly, although interrupting his usual routine, Astrid arrived with her axe, apparently wanting it sharpened, Snotlout followed a small distance behind her.

Hiccup smirked slightly as he took the axe and moved to the grindstone, Astrid leaned against a wall while she waited, Hiccup was hyper aware of every shift in the girls position, the slow hop from foot to foot as she searched for a topic to discuss, the slight rub of her arm when she couldn't find out anything she thought was interesting enough.

Snotlout continued to inch closer to her, Hiccup's eyes narrowed on the boy, not in anger, he just noticed, he shook his head abruptly as he refocused on the weapon 'Why would I care if he gets closer to her?' He questioned into the back of his own mind.

"Anyone else smell smoked eel?" Snotlout suddenly questioned

The room turned their noses in the air quickly, the boy was right it did hand in the air, Hiccup shrugged "There were a few when I went to get breakfast this morning, maybe the smells stuck on me."

He'd never tell them he figured the smell might be useful in today's test so he had wrapped one around his stomach underneath his armor, an action his kind of regretted every time the slimy dead animal rubbed against him.

He shivered slightly as the eel rubbed against his back, he brought the axe up and examined it, he handed it to Astrid after he concluded it was sufficiently sharp, the girl did her own inspection and Hiccup shot Snotlout a glare that caused the boy to put some distance between himself and Astrid, the girl missed the look as she turned back to the boy and thanked him.

At the realization she would be walking to the arena alone with Snotlout, Hiccup stiffened, annoyance evident on his face as he turned to Gobber.

"Off you go, I'll be there soon." Gobber waved off with a suggestive smirk, as he knew exactly what was on Hiccup's mind.

"Astrid," He called quickly, the girl paused and turned around, giving him a silent questioning look "I, uh, just finished up, why don't we head over t-together?" He asked, suddenly more nervous than he felt he should be 'What is happening to me?'

"Yeah, sure." Astrid responded calmly, even if she was curious at Hiccup's sudden change in character.

He nodded gratefully as he turned around, the immense relief that she had said yes was unmistakable as he retrieved his helmet and placed it on, he fell into step beside the other two as they moved towards the arena.

Hiccup racked the inside of his head, he was aware of his change in character, but he didn't know how to stop it or why it even started in the first place, the only thing he could remember being out of the ordinary was when she took his hand the da before, the tingling in his fingers had been a foreign feeling to him, the day after he suddenly felt possessive and nervous asking her if he could walk with her, he glanced at Snotlout quickly the black haired boy moved forward a few steps and turned in front of Astrid "When I win dragon training how about me and you go out?" He asked the blonde confidently.

Astrid rolled her eyes in disgust "You have a better chance getting killed than winning dragon training." She responded flatly

"So, is that a yes or a no?" Snotlout asked in confusion

Hiccup gritted his teeth a the boy "It's a 'no' you bumbling muttonhead!" He practically growled, his tone made the pair beside him start slightly, he took a deep breath.

"At least I'm pretty sure it's a no." He added, tone returning to neutral.

"Let me clarify for you," Astrid offered taking a she toward the black haired boy and slugging in the stomach hard as she could, he groaned in pain, the small half smirk staying on Astrid's face the whole time "Clarified?"

The boy nodded his head "Yep, got it." He announced, taking off towards the arena ahead of them.

Again, Hiccup felt relief, although he never thought Astrid would ever agree to go with Snotlout, any minute possibility that his Astrid would taken from him was…his thoughts trailed off 'Mine? My Astrid?' He clarified in his own head, the realization of what was happening to him hit him like a falling dragon, he stared at the blond girl walking a confident step ahead of him, she noticed his look and turned around, flashing him a rare smile and his heartbeat quickened against his ribcage "What?"

Hiccup snapped out of his stupor with a shake of his head 'Uh, Nothing, just thinking about…some things."

Astrid shrugged as the pair arrived at the arena, they quickly realized that the arena was devoid of any weapons at all, Hiccup was glad that he had something to distract himself, the Twins and Fishlegs arrived a few moments later, Hiccup distracted himself by talking to Fishlegs as Ruffnut walked over to Astrid.

"Did you do something to Hiccup?" The twin asked in confusion, glancing at the armored boy out of the corner of her eye, he seemed to regret bringing up dragons to talk with Fishlegs.

Even Astrid winced at the animated nature of Fishlegs talking, Hiccup did his best to appear interested.

"No, nothing out of the ordinary has happened since yesterday, he sharpened my axe at the forge," Astrid placed a finger against his chin "He keeps glaring at Snotlout whenever he gets near me, as if that's something new." She grimaced as she shot her own piercing glare at the boy.

Ruffnut frowned "So, What as the unordinary thing that happened yesterday?"

Astrid colored slightly "I held his hand," She paused "Only for a second, when he picked me up, you know, I didn't realize guys hands are so much bigger than girls." Astrid rambled in a hushed excited tone.

Ruffnut smirked "So, he held your hand and he's suddenly possessive?"

"That's one way to look at it I guess, why?" Astrid questioned

Ruffnut shrugged, doubting Hiccup would want her to spill the beans "I don't know, just an observation."

Before Astrid could question the other girl further, Gobber arrived, the one legged man moved around the arena, retrieving the weapons of the teens and replaced them with buckets of water, they eyed the man in confusion.

"Now, a wet dragon head can't light it's fire," He moved to the cage that contained the Zippleback "The Hideous Zippleback is extra tricky, one head breaths gas, the other head, ignites it."

He pushed the leaver and the caged smashed open, a cloud of green gas bellowing from it and surrounding the teens, slowly obscuring there sightlines.

"Razor sharp fangs inject venom for predigestion, or it might go with its ambush attack, crushing it's victims-" Fishlegs cut off as Hiccup spoke.

"Would you please stop that!" He growled angrily in annoyance.

Fishlegs pursed his lips closed, noticing the other boys agitation, he opened his mouth to say something but decided against it, opting to circle around the boys back and watch his blind spot.

Hiccup eyed the gas carefully, more worried about Astrid than himself, even if the thought was illogical.

Astrid and Ruffnut continued to circle each other as they watched for the Zippleback, the gas began to clear slightly and they heard a loud shout, the girls snapped to the source of the sound as a wall of water slammed into them, Astrid's breath drew in quickly as the ice cold water soaked straight into her tunic and hair.

The gas cleared enough to see Tuffnut and Snotlout, buckets obviously empty.

Tuffnut laughed "Hah, your butts must be getting bigger we thought you were a dra-." He cut off when his sisters bucket slammed into his nose.

"Not that there's anything wrong with a dragonesque fig-." Snotlout also cut off when Astrid punched him in the face, her own bucked splashed against the ground.

Hiccup and Fishlegs emerged from the gas at the scene, they could piece what had happened together, Fishlegs heard a sharp hiss from his left as a head emerged from the gas, he shifted his grip on the bucket and threw it on the head, it hissed in discomfort for a moment before gas leaked from its mouth.

"Oh, wrong head." He sounded as if it was an afterthought, the head sprayed him with gas and he bolted behind Gobber, Hiccup watched the dragon calmly, waiting for the second head to emerge as the first retreated into the gas.

A head emerged from the gas again, it twisted towards him slowly, his eyes narrowed on it carefully, before a single droplet of water fell from its head and splashed against the ground, Hiccup's face twisted into a small smirk, he held still as the second head slithered out of the gas, he threw the bucket at the beast, it surprised him when the first head cut into the waters path, the water splashed uselessly over the gas spewing head.

"Oh come on." Hiccup sounded in his nasally tone.

The dragon hissed and moved towards him, his foot caught a discard shield and he toppled backwards, Gobber bounced on his leg as he moved towards the boy before freezing.

"Back!, that's right back!" Hiccup shouted as he moved towards the dragon, it continued to retreat from him "Back inside your cage," He glanced at the people behind him as he stealthily removed the eel from under his shirt "And think about what you've done." He added in a whisper dropping the eel on the ground of the cage and closing the cage.

The group stared at him in open eyed surprise, not a sound could be heard in the arena until Fishlegs bucked fell out of his hands, the sound caused the group to start slightly "Maybe the Dragonboy of Berk was more suited to you than we thought." Gobber joked loudly, slapping Fishlegs on the back with his hook.

The group joined the laughter, including Hiccup albeit his laugh was slower and slightly nervous.

As the laughter died down, Gobber spoke again "Tonight we'll be eating up there, I'll answer a few of your dragon related questions if you have any."

The group nodded, a breeze blew through the arena, Astrid rubbed at her arms as her teeth chattered, the cold water and cold breeze not doing wonders for her comfort, Hiccup grimaced as he removed his chest piece, he pulled his thick undershirt over his head and handed it to the blonde, Astrid took the piece of fabric without fully turning around, until Ruffnut let out a loud wolf whistle from the other end of the arena, Astrid turned with a questioning glance, Hiccup gave her a small smirk, she could tell by the way he tilted his head to the side and his eyes glowed ever so slightly.

Her eyes trailed down his shirtless body, she certainly liked what she saw, whilst he looked skinny and slightly weak, his body was toned to almost perfection, she assumed I was from many years of training in the wild to hunt, her mouth watering view was taken from her when he pulled her armor back over his head and strapped it closed, he gave her a confused look when he realized she was just open mouthed gaping at him, his shirt held limply in her hand.

She shook her head and snapped out of her trance, he averted his gaze as he moved passed her, glad that his mask hid the bright blush on his face, not that he didn't enjoy her reaction to his body, it was still quiet embarrassing.

Astrid looked down at her wet shirt and quickly removed it, the icy breeze on her skin was worse, she quickly pulled the undershirt over her head, she suppressed a moan of relief at it's absurd warmth, it hung over her loosely, she was glad the neck was quite large enough to slink over her shoulder, even if it did almost hang low enough to show off her chest binding, she was glad for the warmth. She took a deep breath of in the comfort, a scent she could only describe as Hiccup filled her lungs and she shivered slightly 'He was right when he said that smoked eel smell stuck, it's still here.' She thought as she retrieved her axe and moved out of the arena.

* * *

Hiccup moved back to his home quickly retrieving another short, he slid it on and left for the point Gobber had directed them too, he was surprised to find Astrid there before him, still clad in his shirt, she held a large chicken over a fire, watching the meat cook idly, his shirt was just a little bit too big for her, the arms hung over her knuckles, leaving just a small amount of her slender finger grasping the stick, the neck dipped dangerously low on her chest, he sat beside her rigidly, she started only just realizing he was there.

Her cheeks colored slightly as she realized she was still in his shirt, it was just too warm, she had dumped her wet shirt in her room and pretty much ran up to this point "Sorry, I figured we were supposed to be quick, so I didn't bother changing again." She said quickly, using that as her excuse.

"Oh, uh, it's fine," Hiccup waved off, spiking a cod on a stick and handing over the fire "I have like twelve so it's not an issue."

She raised an eyebrow at the boy beside her questioningly, wondering why he was so rigid, she had been closer to him than this and he never seemed stiff, her mouth turned in a mischievous grin as her eyes glinted, she shifted closer to him ever so slightly "It's cold out tonight." It wasn't entirely untrue, it was cold tonight, although she couldn't really feel it as she inched towards the boy beside her.

"Y-Yeah," If he noticed her movement he didn't let on about it "It is a bit."

The other arrived soon after, Ruffnut took a single glance at the pair and sat on the opposite side of Astrid, Fishlegs sat beside her and Snotlout and Tuffnut took the small seats on the other side of the fire, Gobber was against the last to arrive, bringing more food in a cart behind him.

A night of questions and eventually Gobber was telling the story of how her had lost his limbs, Astrid had succeeded in her goal of getting as close to Hiccup as possible, even going as far as resting her cheek on his shoulder, the boy had eventually relaxed from the contact, he surprised her when partway through the story his arm slipped around her back and squeezed her hip lightly.

"And with one twist the Nightmare swallowed it whole," Gobber animated pointing at his hook "And I saw the look on his face, I was delicious," He paused for a moment "He must have passed the word, because it wasn't a month before another took my leg."

"How can you be sure it wasn't the same one?" Hiccup questioned jokingly.

Gobber opened his mouth to respond, but he had no real proof it wasn't the same dragon, he just settled with a shrug.

"Isn't it weird to think that your hand was inside a dragon? Like if your mind was still in control of it, you could have killed the dragon by crushing it's heart, or something." Fishlegs theorized, mashing his two chicken legs together for emphasis.

"I swear I'm so angry right now!" Snotlout growled, tossing his empty stick into the fire "I'll avenge your beautiful hand and your beautiful foot, I'll chop of the legs of every dragon I fight….with my face." He pointed to his mouth confidently as he spoke.

"No, it's the wings and tails you want," Gobber explained breaking a piece off his chicken "If they can't fly, they can't get away, a downed dragon is a dead dragon."

Hiccup's eyes widened with realization, the tail of the Nightfury he had broken, it really did need it too fly, his eyes darted to Astrid who was beginning to doze off on his arm, he stretched his arms in a yawn, the action jostled her awake.

"Right, get some rest," Gobber ordered simply "You'll need it, we are moving up the big boys soon, slowly but surely making our way up to the Monstrous Nightmare, but who will win the honor of killing it?"

"It's gonna be me, it's my destiny." Tuffnut announced confidently, drawing the attention of the group, Hiccup used the moment to slip away.

"See?" The male twin continued, lifting his shirt.

"Whoa, your mom actually let you get a tattoo?" Fishlegs exhaled in awe.

"It's not a tattoo it's a birthmark." Tuffnut responded.

"Uh, I've been stuck with you since birth and I that has never been there before." Ruffnut drawled.

"Yes it was, you've just never seen me from the left side before now." Tuff shot at her.

Hiccup couldn't hear how the conversation continued after that as he made a beeline to the forge.

Astrid noticed the absence of the warmth beside her and turned to discover Hiccup had already left without saying anything, she sighed and shrugged slightly as she made her way home, she caught sight of a light on at the forge, she could barely make out the boy moving hurriedly around inside, she smirked slightly to herself, wondering what he was making as she moved inside her home and fell on her bed heavily.

* * *

Hiccup smirked down at his small creation, he scrutinized it for a moment as he pulled it open and closed it, he slowly thought about ways he could get it on, he had just gained the dragons trust, he didn't want to do something to lose it after that.

He yawned tiredly as he made it home, a number of thoughts circling his mind, Toothless, the Academy, his mind settled on Astrid as his head hit the fur pillow beneath him, her warmth, her smile, a small smile fell on his face as he fell asleep.

* * *

 **A/N: This chapter crossed the seven thousand word mark! *Party poppers, cannons, confetti fly's everywhere.* well, a lot happened, Hiccup's crushing hard and appearances would say Astrid is too! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I will see you guys next time, peace!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Yo, I'm back! I know, I was gone for almost twelve whole hours!? *Horrified gasp*, I'm kidding of course, the update speed for this is mostly due to HTTYD being my current binge-watching obsession so the idea's are just all there.**

 **A little response to a guest who said my Hiccup is using his shield similar to a certain avenger (Capt. America.) I can honestly say this review gave me a laugh, but I hadn't even noticed I had Hiccup doing Captain America things, it just sort of worked out that way when I wrote it, but I mean, as far as use of a shield goes, Captain America's got that shit down pat, but I'll try and branch it out, Capt Berk's? Got to rest his shield arm (Not even ashamed :P) Without further delay, literature!**

* * *

Hiccup only paused at the entrance of the cove to put down his knife, he walked inside and placed the large basket of fish on his back on the ground, overturning it, Toothless darted over quickly and began eating as Hiccup moved around the side of the Nightfury slowly, artificial tailfin tucked under his arm as he approached the injured side of its tail.

Hiccup paid the tail down beside it and moved it against the dragon quickly, it's tail swished slowly away from him, he glanced at the dragon, it's head still chomping away at the fish he had brought, he shifted once again pushing the tail against the dragon, only to have it move again.

Hiccup glared at the rock wall in front of him, got to his feet and sat down on top of the tail, fastening the buckles around it quickly.

Toothless's head perked up at the feeling of something against his tail fin, he frowned and shifted his body slightly before his bright green eyes widened and his wings outstretched slowly.

Hiccup watched the fin carefully, drawing it out and closing it before opening it again.

"Looks good, it works," He thought aloud, before his eyes trailed over the other half of the tail fin, the appendage slowly opening in front of him, before he could turn to the dragon it snapped it's wings down, a powerful burst of air taking them up, Hiccup latched onto the dragons tail as they gained altitude.

The tail snapped close against the air and Toothless let out a panicked shriek as he began falling, Hiccup grabbed a hold of the fin and pulled it out, Toothless leveled out.

"It works!" Hiccup exclaimed in excitement, turning it, the dragon banked to the left, swerving around the cove "I actually did it! Yes, it works!"

Toothless glanced at the boy still latched on to his tail, he turned over the lake and gave his tail a quick flick, the boy was thrown off and the fin snapped close, the dragon let out a growl as it slammed into the water.

Hiccup surfaced on the other side of the lake with a shout, throwing his hands into the air in excitement, Toothless groaned in minor annoyance as it made its way back to the shore.

Hiccup moved towards the dragon as water pooled underneath him, Toothless gave him a look before firing a wide breath of flame at him, the heat passed around him and effectively dried him, Hiccup let out a nervous chuckle "Thanks bud."

Toothless made a sound somewhere in between a grunt and a growl as he laid his head down, Hiccup placed his hand against the dragons nose "I'm the one that stopped you from being able to fly, I'll be the one to fix it." The boy smiled and tilted his head the side, the dragon warbled at him in what he hoped was appreciation.

* * *

Astrid awoke to the sound of one of her floorboards creaking, she lifted her head slightly to peer at the person in her room, still clad in Hiccup's shirt from the day before "Hey there." The voice of the person in front of her was definitely not her mother or father, her breath caught in her throat as the figure lowered, the early morning light illuminating the face just enough for her to make out Hiccup, his emerald eyes shining with something she almost didn't recognize.

Had Astrid been thinking properly, she might have asked why he was in her room at all, but she was not thinking properly, in fact she wasn't really thinking at all, A small half smile sat on Hiccups face as he moved towards her, Astrid glanced down at herself before grabbing a hold of her furs and drawing the around herself, inching away from the boy warily.

Hiccup paused, his eyes reflected a little bit of hurt as he took a seat the edge of her bed, Astrid paused and shifted towards him, she moved to give him a light punch on the shoulder, but he caught her hand and flipped her, a giggle escaped her mouth and she slapped her hands over it, Astrid may have done many things that would be considered out of character in last few days, but she did not giggle.

Hiccup tilted his head to the side slightly as he hovered over her, Astrid became suddenly aware of the situation as he pulled her hands away from her mouth, running his hands over her stomach as they settled on her waist, everywhere his hands travelled felt like it lit on fire as he dipped it his head towards her.

"Astrid!" The blonde started awake, she was once again in her room, again still clad in Hiccup's shirt, but it was now much further on in the morning, her mother stood at the door with a disapproving huff "Your gonna be late if you don't get a move on."

Astrid nodded her head stiffly as her mother pulled her door closed slowly, Astrid jumped to her feet, she stared at her hands for a few moments in panic, still waiting for her heartbeat to calm down and the images her imagination cooked up to disappear, which proved difficult since every time she inhaled she could smell _him,_ she peeled his shirt off of her and lifted her arm to throw it before she paused, she took a deep breath, which effectively calmed her down as she dropped the shirt on the edge of her bed. She shook her head lightly as the color in her cheeks slowly subsided, she grabbed her own shirt and pulled it on, clipping her shoulder guards on and pulling her armored skirt over her leggings, she shook herself for a moment and grabbed her axe as she moved downstairs.

Astrid's mother moved about the hearth in the centre of their home calmly, stirring a pot every few moments as Astrid took her seat at the table, with most of the warriors out on Stoick's search for the Dragon's Nest it was only the two of them.

Astrid's mother raised an eyebrow at her daughter, she was quite similar to her daughter in looks, slender in frame, her hair was a dark red instead of Astrid's blonde that she inherited from her father, Astrid took after her mother in personality the slender fighter was known for her bursts of anger in her younger years, a mischievous glint entered her mother's eyes as she slid a bowl to her daughter.

Astrid accepted the bowl with a grateful smile and a wary look, as she placed the spoon in her mouth her mother spoke.

"Sounded like you were having a nice dream." Astrid choked abruptly on her food and her mother broke into a fit of laughter.

"H-H-How did you know about that?!" Astrid demanded, a small amount of fright in her voice as she started.

Her mother continued her small fits of laughter for a few moments before settling "Lass, I was a young girl once too you know, that and the sounds you were making gave it away."

Astrid colored four shades of red and averted her eyes.

"Hah, to be young and in love is a wonderful thing, I never wore your fathers shirt to bed, but times be changing." Astrid's mother chuckled as the girl seemed to grow redder, shoulders drawing in on themselves in embarrassment.

"The Haddock boy eh? A little wild, but he's definitely a catch and you know the rules of the Hofferson's, I shouldn't have to tell you." Astrid just nodded to her mother violently as she downed her food in hasty gulps, stopping to drink a quick jug of water and darting off.

"Okay, Mom great talk, got to go, bye!" The girl spoke in a quick frenzy as she pulled on her boots and left her home.

One outside Astrid took a long breath, she spotted Ruffnut across the village square, appearance not at all unlike her own, Astrid approached the girl slowly.

Ruffnut raised her eyebrow slightly "Ugh, Mother's right?"

"Yeah, I actually have to sort of agree with you on this one." Astrid nodded as she spoke.

"Oh, you got the 'young and in love' gush too?" Ruffnut asked with a chuckle.

"Oh, if it was only _that_ I could probably have dealt with it." Astrid waved off, peering around the square.

"What could possibly make that worse?" Ruffnut asked curiously

"When your mother knows who your into," Astrid replied with a shudder " _And approves._ "

Ruffnut made an intelligible sound between a gargle and a groan "Yeah, I don't envy you at all."

"Who's envying? Nobody envies on this island without me knowing about it, I want deets." Tuffnut dropped beside the pair of girls suddenly, Astrid started and Ruffnut cocked her arm back and punched her brother in the side of the head quickly.

"None of your business." She responded flatly

Astrid ignored the twins as she spotted Hiccup enter the square and move towards he forge, only from where he entered it looked as if he came from the forest, not his house, Astrid tilted her head slightly in confusion, 'Why would he be out in the forest this early?' She thought to herself as her eyes continued to follow the boy, eventually falling on Tuffnut, who had almost perched his chin atop her shoulder trying to figure out what she was looking at.

"I don't get it, it's just Hiccup," Tuffnut shrugged "Is it a girl thing to just stare at guys they like?"

"Wha? No, I don't like Hiccup." Astrid defended unconvincingly.

"What? Ruffnut, you lied to me, you told me Astrid had a thing for the scrawny wild boy." Tuff pointed at Hiccup for emphasis.

"Well, he isn't that scrawny." Ruffnut drawled in counter.

"Good point, you must have meant a different wild boy, where can I find him?" Tuffnut asked quickly.

Astrid just face palmed.

* * *

"You seem to be spending a lot of time in the forest these days lad." Gobber noted as Hiccup entered the forge.

"I go out early to get extra training," Hiccup replied with a shrug, he had already thought up an excuse for this "Plenty of room out there to let loose, you know?"

"Aye do at that," Gobber nodded as he bent a sword back into shape "Seems like the ol'gothi's got her work cut out for her this year, choosing the recruit that gets to slay the dragon."

Hiccup shrugged "Honestly, I think I could do with another year of your fine tutoring Gobber." He replied sarcastically

"Aha, of course you could," Gobber laughed "Sure you're not just going to let your lady friend win to make yourself look better."

Hiccup stiffened and approached the one legged man quickly, Gobber rested his chin on his hammer as the boy walked up to him.

"How could you possibly know about that? I only figured it out yesterday!" Hiccup threw his arms into the air in exasperation.

"Hiccup, when you've taught as many teenagers as me, you start to see the signs very early, I'm telling you, I will soon be known as Gobber the wise!" The man clenched his fist and struck as pose.

Hiccup slumped and ran a hand over his face "Great perfect, at this rate half the village will know before Astrid does."

"Before I know what?" Astrid asked, entering at the end of the conversation.

"Uh, Astrid! Hey, Astrid, hi Astrid, hey Astrid…" Hiccup trailed off nervously with a chuckle "Just you know, that you're the most likely too…uh, get picked in Dragon Academy."

The blonde's eyebrows rose slightly as she looked too Gobber for confirmation, Hiccup made a gesture of prayer behind Astrid and mouthed the word 'please' to the old blacksmith.

"Uh, yeah, what he said," Gobber gestured at Hiccup with his hammer "If everything keeps going as it is that is of course." The blacksmith added, bailing Hiccup out just in case Astrid wasn't selected.

Astrid nodded her head "Well, can't get my hopes up to early."

Gobber nodded his head quickly, the blonde dropped her axe in Hiccups hands and the boy moved to the grindstone quickly, mouthing 'thank you' at Gobber as he sat down.

Gobber let out a quick chuckle as he continued beating the sword with his hammer.

Hiccup ran the blonde's axe over the grindstone for barely a second before he pulled it up and looked at it, he ran his finger over the blade and winced when it nicked him, he shook his finger and placed it in his mouth for a moment.

"Uh, Astrid this is already really sharp." He sounded as he handed to her.

Astrid started slightly "Oh is it?" She replied, her voice at a higher pitch than he had heard before, she coughed into her hand "So it is." She nodded as she examined it.

Astrid's eyes kept darting to Hiccup's face, specifically his lips, 'Curse that stupid dream, curse my stupid mother, couldn't he just have waited twenty more seconds?!' She shook her head roughly dispelling the thoughts effectively, until Hiccup spoke and they popped back into her mind more obvious than before.

"You two crazy kids can get over to the arena, I'll be there momentarily." Gobber waved, the pair nodded, Hiccup darted into the back room to grab his helmet, as soon as the door closed behind him he shook himself, letting out a few breaths as he grabbed his helmet and calmed his nerves, he was trying to behave normally around Astrid, no good could come from randomly professing his feelings in the forge, no he needed, time, a plan and with the Nightfury to worry about he had more than enough on his plate.

He let out one last exhale through his mouth as he pulled his helmet on, as he left the forge he fiddled with the buckle on his gauntlet tightening the slightly lose piece of armor as he heard the sound of a boot scratching on dirt, his eyes lifted to see Snotlout's fist flying towards him, Hiccup dropped and ducked left, the fist flew passed his face by barely an inch as he spun around Snotlout quickly and glared at the boy.

"You need something?" He demanded angrily

"See guys, I told you it'd never work!" Snotlout shouted, the twins broke into laughter behind him.

Hiccup straightened and turned to the twins in curiosity "Don't look at me it was her idea." Tuffnut pointed at Ruffnut blankly.

Hiccup didn't even know where to start, so he just sighed and fell into step beside Astrid "Thanks for the warning."

"Eh, was kinda hoping Snotlout would get you just so I could see you beat the tar out of somebody." Astrid shrugged a smug smile on her face.

Hiccup glanced at her, the let out a casual whistle as he slowed his pace ever so slightly and looked around.

As they rounded the corner Astrid felt something sharp press against her backside, she started and her hands darted behind her, as Hiccup took a quickstep past her, she could make out the mischievous little smirk on his face just from his eyes, her lips pursed as he darted in front of her, she lowered slightly as she chased after him.

They arrived at the arena in recorded time, mostly thanks to Hiccup running like his life depended on it, from Astrid's face it might actually be.

He slid to a stop when he realized the arena's portcullis was still closed, he frowned at it and tilted his head, Astrid didn't slow down as she slammed into his back, pinning him against the bars with one hand whilst the other flew passed his head to stop him from running.

A devilish smile came to her face as she pulled Hiccup's helmet off his head, his auburn hair spewed out loosely around his head, Astrid tilted her head as she eyed him carefully.

"Uh.." Hiccup started before she cut him off.

"I'm gonna give you one chance to explain that." Astrid sounded flatly.

"Look now that I think about it there were many methods I could have used to wipe that smug smirk off your face, this might not have been the best one, but it was effective." He defended in a quick flurry.

For a long moment Astrid remained silent, then something seemed to click in her brain as she moved her hands around Hiccups head slowly, running her finger along his jaw line, Hiccup just froze, half of him wondering what she was doing, the other half assuming she was about to strangle him.

Astrid leaned towards him, close enough that he could feel her breath on his face, she smelled faintly of vanilla, although he couldn't understand why at all, the thought did hit him as she quite suddenly pulled away from him, quite pointedly strutting away from him.

Hiccup tilted his head slightly watching her figure sway as she moved "Gobber must think he's hilarious right now."

"Why's that?" Hiccup asked in confusion.

"That portcullis only closes when we aren't having a class." Astrid called back as she disappeared around the edge of the arena.

Hiccup sank to the ground and let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding, his cheeks colored as his body snapped through every emotion he had felt in the last four minutes, he made a long exhale and pulled his helmet back on.

* * *

He eventually made his way back to the forge, finding Gobber still working away calmly, as Hiccup entered Gobber gave a short laugh "Heh, have a nice chat?"

Hiccup shot the man a glare and Gobber shrugged "Figured I'd give you the opportunity to declare your feelings somewhere private, can't hurt a man for helping."

"You're not helping," Hiccup shot at him, before taking a breath "Just, leave it alone, I'll figure it out on my own."

"Aye lad, you are always a man with a plan, much like your father in that sense." Gobber waved off as Hiccup entered his office.

He set his helmet down calmly, he had a whole day left to use and no idea how to use it, he pulled out his journal and looked over his designs for the tail and rubbed at his chin calmly, the action reminded him of Astrid and his hand recoiled from his face as it had been burned, his eyes trailed up in annoyance as he realized she had done that on purpose, apparently she had noticed he rubbed his chin when he thought 'All for a pinch? Granted, the target I pinched might have been a little…inappropriate, but a man needs to think!' He mentally defended.

He ran a hand through his hair in exasperation 'Okay, focus,' His foot began tapping the ground as he thought "I can't just sit on Toothless's tail and move the fin, I need a saddle, a mechanism that lets me move the tail without having to move from Toothless's back.' His hand almost began moving on its own as he thought, drawing the saddle, the connection to it, the small foot pedal to tilt the tail, the connecting rod, he stretched up as he finished, his shoulder letting out a resounding pop, he glanced up at the small hole in the corner of his office, the sun was glowing a dark orange. He couldn't hear Gobber in the forge anymore, moving out of the room he slipped in apron over his head as he got to work, melting down metal and molding it, he removed the screws from shields and melted them into small balls, he chiseled connections into them as he designed built the pedal he would use to move the fin, he made the saddle out of the best leather he could find in Gobber's small forge, he finished with a small smile on his face and wiped at his brow, the mechanism folded in on itself, allowing him to hide it behind the saddle easily, he blew out the last lantern in the forge and made a quick dash home, he placed the saddle on his desk and quickly flopped on his bed.

* * *

He woke up the next morning to a note on his door from Gobber, it simply read 'take a day off, a proper one.' Hiccup shrugged, tossing the not into the hearth as he moved out the backdoor into the forest, in his haste forgetting to bring more food for Toothless.

When he arrived at the cove, he didn't even bother to leave his blade at the entrance, Toothless greeted him with a quick tackle, a long lick across his chest.

Hiccup groaned slightly in disgust as he got up, flicking the dragon's saliva off of him, Toothless warbled at him and Hiccup flicked the last bit at the dragon, it slapped against its face lightly.

Toothless tilted it's head, silently wondering what Hiccup had brought, Hiccup smirked as he lifted it "Look at this bud!"

Toothless back away from the saddle, quickly realizing the teens intention "Toothless, I get this on you and we might even be able to get you flying again."

The dragon paused, eyeing the teen carefully, it placed its front leg on the ground slowly before moving towards him, as if in understanding, Hiccup grinned as he set to work, tying the saddle onto the Nightfury's back, Hiccup climbed onto the dragons back slowly, the pedal clattered slightly as Hiccup set his foot into it, he peered back at the tail as he moved his foot, the tail flipped open, Hiccup pushed it foot forward and the tail snapped shut.

Hiccup could feel Toothless relaxing his shoulders under him "I know your eager bud," Hiccup patted the dragons head lightly "But I don't know how you fly exactly, we are gonna have to take this slow."

Toothless bobbed his head, seemingly in agreement, Hiccup frowned, his knuckle brushing against his chin as he thought, a light shiver went up his spine and he shook himself quickly before an idea came to him, he pet the back of Toothless's head "I think you are going to like this."

Toothless glanced at the teen for a moment before Hiccup lowered his body flush against saddle and snapped the tail open, Toothless relaxed into it as his wings stretched out, one powerful wing beat later the two were off the ground and out of the cove, Hiccup stayed just above the tree's but low enough no one from Berk would see them, he landed at the edge of a cliff, the stump of a tree standing resolutely in the stone, the landed lightly, Toothless made a discomforted sound as they did and Hiccup dismounted "I know bud, but I need to learn how to work your tail properly, this is the best way."

Hiccup withdrew a length of rope from the side of the saddle, he had filled it with a few things he thought might come in handy, he tied the rope the edge of the saddle and the stump, effectively anchoring Toothless to a low hover, cutting a smaller length of rope he tied it to a small metal connecter and clipped it to his waist before snapping the metal over, locking himself to the saddle, he rolled his shoulders as he moved his foot the tail fin snapped open and Toothless let his wings out, catching the air around them he floated into the air slowly, Hiccup snapped a small piece of paper onto the saddle in front of him, he quickly penciled in the first fin position, drawing a small arrow pointing up beside it signaling elevation. He closed the tail and added that for descent, drawing a small arrow pointing down, he did the same for each direction, he smiled to himself as he slowly began getting used to the tail, he heard the rope groan suddenly and it snapped, sending both him and the dragon rolling through some long grass, Hiccup was face first on the ground as Toothless rolled around in the grass happily, dragging the teen along with him, Hiccup drew his knife and cut the rope connecting him to Toothless, Toothless continued rolling in the grass, a clearly euphoric look on his face. Hiccup glanced at the bundle of grass he held in his hand and smirked, he pocketed the grass and moved to get Toothless back up, he glanced at the sky for a moment.

"Alright bud, I gotta get back." Toothless glanced at him happily as he began leading the dragon away from the cliff.

* * *

Hiccup yawned tiredly as he arrived at the arena, it had taken hours to convince Toothless to go back into the cove, the dragon had his freedom, he most certainly didn't want to give it back up, eventually a few dozen fish and the promise of actual flight had gotten the beast to settle down, Hiccup yawned again, but that left him with a new problem he had to end the dragon academy lesson quickly, his finger's brushed against the grass he had yesterday as his mind finally refocused on the scene in front of him, Snotlout was rammed away by the Gronkle as the dragon moved towards Hiccup.

The boy shrugged, bragging the small section of grass and sheathing his weapon, he held it out in front of him, the Gronkle caught the scent of the grass and flopped to the ground sliding to a stop in front of Hiccup, he scratched it's nose lightly and it's pupil's dilated as he moved it to its side.

The teens froze in minor shock, that was the second time the boy had downed a dragon without using a weapon, Hiccup stared back impassively "Okay are we done? Cause I've got some things I need to, yeah okay." He nodded as he jogged out of the arena.

Astrid frowned at the boys back as he darted out of the arena, Hiccup and her had been on an even playing field before he started using, what she could almost describe as magic, she wasn't a fool, she could tell the elder was beginning to lean towards Hiccup over her, her fist and clenched and she took a deep breath 'He's cheating.' A venomous voice suddenly spat in her head, she shook the thought away, but the small seed of doubt that planted in the pit of her stomach wasn't going to removed so simply.

* * *

Hiccup closed his eyes against the rushing breeze, a small grin appeared on his face as he lowered himself onto Toothless back properly, clouds surrounded them as they glided through the air, Toothless made a please rumble in his throat, obviously glad to be back in the air.

"Alright bud, let's see what we can do." Hiccup announced excitedly, Toothless let out another rumble in agreement as Hiccup moved his foot, the fin snapped open the pair began ascending, Toothless let his tongue flap out his mouth much like a dog, as the climbed.

"Woo! Go baby!" Hiccup urged, standing slightly in the saddle, the action cause the tail to close slightly, Toothless turned down abruptly, Hiccup's eyes widened slightly as he felt the rope that connected him to the saddle slide off "Oh, no." He let out sarcastically as the pair began falling, Toothless realized a moment later that Hiccup was now hovering ever so slightly above him, the dragon let out a panicked roar as they began to plummet towards the earth.

Hiccup spread his arms out beside him, wind caught underneath him and hovered him for a moment as adrenaline kicked his senses into overdrive, he watched Toothless flail for a moment before he snapped his arms to his sides, rifling towards the dragon as it turned and flipped, he caught hold of the back of Toothless's tail and clawed his way along the dragon's back, pulling himself correctly onto the saddle he clipped himself back in quickly, he pushed backwards hard, Toothless's wings open slowing their descent slightly, the of ahead of them parted and Hiccup could see the large jagged rocks that awaited them, Hiccup glanced at the cheat sheet in front of him, he took a quick breath as he lowered into the dragon, Toothless felt the boys confidence and quieted as they moved like a missile towards the rocks.

Hiccup let out a long breath as he moved, his foot slid forward and Toothless turned right, flipping over and dropping through a hole in the rocks, Hiccup pulled back, a sharp left turn around another rock as he leveled the fin, Toothless pulled his wings in rifling through the last gap in the rocks before the pair leveled out, Hiccup tossed the cheat sheet into the wind and threw his arms in the air.

"Yeah!" He shouted in excitement, adrenaline wearing off as Toothless let a fireball explode in front of them in victory.

Hiccup slumped as the fire hit him, effectively dying around his eyes black with soot, the pair sat around a small fire, Hiccup roasting a fish as Toothless spewed a piece of one of his latest meals onto the rocks, Hiccup glanced at it "Uh, no thanks I'm good." A shriek brought the boys attention to the sky.

A handful of terrible terrors landed a short distance from the fire and Toothless growled, as far as Hiccup was concerned the small dragons in front of him posed no threat to either of them, so he ignored them as one grabbed the head of fish Toothless had thrown up for him.

Toothless jumped slightly and Hiccup watched a cod suddenly seemed to stand up, before it was dragged from the pile by one of the smaller dragons, Toothless latched onto the food quickly, the terrors teeth ripped through the fishes tail and Toothless made a sound all too similar to laughter.

The terror spat the pieces of fishtail from its mouth and dragged it's claws along the rocks, raising on its hind legs as fire built in its belly, it opened its mouth to fire and Toothless shot a small ball of fire into its gullet, lighting the gas that built in its body up, smoke billowed from every hole in the creatures body and Hiccup chuckled "Not so fireproof on the inside huh?" He said aloud.

"Here ya go," He tossed the small dragon his spare fish, the terror gobbled it quickly before curling in a ball under Hiccups hand, a sudden realization struck the boy as the small dragon breathed beneath his palm "Everything we know about you guys…is wrong."

Toothless eyed the boy curiously as he fell into thought.

* * *

Gobber stood on the docks, an almost bored expression on his face as he watched what was left of the last boat pull into the docks, Stoick stepped onto the dock heavily an angry look on his face.

"Well, I trust you found the nest at least?" Gobber asked optimistically.

"Not even close." Stoick practically growled in response.

"Ah, perfect." Gobber nodded sarcastically

"Well, I hope you had more luck than me." Stoick prompted

Gobber sighed, that was likely Stoick's way of asking how Hiccup was doing "A bit, Astrid and Hiccup seem neck and neck with the elder, although recently the boys been improving in astonishing way, I won't be surprised if he ends up on top before the end."

Stoick hid a grin behind his hand and snorted "Ah, Good, very good." He nodded "I'll have to come and watch the lesson tomorrow, see for myself."

"Aye, I suggest you do, can't imagine Gothi waiting much longer." Gobber nodded

* * *

Hiccup leaned against Toothless's side, He got to his feet slowly and Hiccup whimpered quietly as the boy moved to leave, Hiccup titled his head tot eh side as the dragon rose to follow him, Hiccup moved his hand along the dragons chin, scratching lightly, Toothless purred into his hand quietly, Hiccup moved along the dragons neck before Toothless suddenly stiffened and fell to the ground, completely asleep.

Hiccup looked at his hand in surprise as he left the cove 'That one will definitely come in handy.'

* * *

He moved toward the back door of his home before someone came up behind him "What are you doing?" Hiccup jumped at the familiar voice.

"Astrid! Hey!" He exclaimed in surprise

"What could you have possibly had to do in the forest Hiccup?" Astrid asked curiously, Hiccup could tell she was also suspicious of him.

The boy averted his gaze slightly as he thought "I was practicing again." He answered

"Really, those weaponless dragon incapacitating moves, wanna tell me how you figured those out?!" She demanded flatly.

Hiccup sighed "Those moves I can't tell you anything other than they work on Wolves and I got lucky." It wasn't entirely untrue, he had found the dragons behaved very similar to wolf pups.

"You expect me to ju-." The pair cut off as Stoick rounded the corner with a loud shout.

"There they are the prides of Berk's Dragon Academy," Stoick announced as he rounded the corner of the house, Astrid stiffened suddenly, 'How much did he hear? Oh, what's he going to think if he heard me drilling into his son all suspicious like that? On that note, what was I even thinking nobody with the skills to teach Hiccup any of that was even on the island!' She chastised herself quickly.

"Hey dad." Hiccup waved nervously

"Everything alright, you two were starting to get loud." Stoick asked curiously.

"Yeah, it's fine, Astrid was just pointing out a few of my mistakes in the ring today, helping me improve you know." Hiccup lied, covering Astrid smoothly.

The girl let out a breath of relief "Yeah, it might be a competition, but we figure we will both be in the force eventually."

"Exactly." Hiccup agreed with a smile.

'He never did answer you though.' A voice whispered in the back of Astrid's mind, she decisively snapped it shut.

"It's a good thing you two are taking your training seriously," Stoick smirked "I've been informed that Gothi will be making her decision tomorrow, while there can only be one winner in that ring, I want you to know I'm proud of both of you."

The pair nodded, Astrid excused herself calmly, walking passed Stoick silently, Stoick noticed Hiccup's gaze lingering on her back a little longer than necessary and smirked "Well, we have a big day tomorrow, you'd best be getting some rest."

Hiccup yawned tiredly at the mention of rest, his tiredness from earlier suddenly coming back with a vengeance, the feeling had been completely forgotten after his adrenaline high earlier that day, he nodded slowly and moved inside, hitting his bed with a heavy thud as he darted upstairs and dived onto it, quickly falling asleep.

* * *

Astrid stared at her ceiling, the venomous voice whispering in her head again 'He had never even seen dragons before two weeks ago, there is no way he could suddenly develop the skills he has.' The voice hissed, Astrid gritted her teeth in annoyance, both that she would allow herself to feel envious of the boy and the fact that she was weak enough to consider the damn voices opinion 'He was _very_ skilled when he showed up, he's been nothing but respectful to me since he arrived, I _will_ not doubt him.'

'Well, theirs is always one way to find out,' The voice suggested 'Follow him.'

Astrid drifted to sleep as the voice finally stopped talking.

* * *

 **A/N: Remember Astrid's competitiveness I mentioned? Yeah, it's been triggered hard, on another note, I think Tuffnut is my spirit animal, aside from the fact that I can imitate his voice perfectly (I am not even kidding a little bit, I was doing it earlier and my dad shouts out 'Are you watching How to train your Dragon again?!') I find writing him just so easy, so yep, spirit animal Tuffnut, not even mad. Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I will see you next time!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Well, since things are moving along nicely in this story and quite obviously heating up, I wanted to ask you guys what you would like to see as I tackle Rider's of Berk and continuing series, of course I plan to do Race to the Edge as well, but with Hiccup how he is, the story will change slightly to suit what I think this Hiccup would do and respond. However that doesn't mean I don't want to cater to a few wants and extra idea's are always welcome, the only thing I will draw the line at his early little Hiccstrid children, I mean, I will probably throw a lemon in this fiction at some point (It'll be marked, don't like it just skip it.) Just because I think that's how relationships naturally progress and the characters a barely supervised teenagers, I mean come on.**

 **The idea I have for the first season actually involves a second Night Fury, so basically what will line up to be Toothless's mate, but I have a number of idea's I think are actually pretty original surrounding this so I hope you enjoy it when it comes around, I'll stop talking now and let you get into the chapter!**

* * *

Hiccup stood in the arena stiffly, he hadn't gotten the opportunity to go see Toothless that morning, his father had been up, excitedly clapping him on the shoulder as he offered him a new sword, a new set of armor and few tips on Nightmare killing, Hiccup had declined the weapons and armor, as he preferred to stay light on his feet, his father had appeared to understand.

Hiccup glanced up at his father, he was standing beside Gothi, he gave the boy a small wave, a large proud grin on his face, Hiccup waved back nervously as he rolled his shoulders, in the time it took getting to the arena he had concluded that Astrid knew he was doing _something_ although she couldn't possibly know he learned the tricks from a Nightfury, she continued to eye him curiously all morning, she had apparently calmed since the day before, but of he decided to use that trick he discovered on Toothless he doubted she would just calmly accept it, which meant he had to fight properly.

Hiccup took a moment to survey the arena, set's of wooden barricades that were about as high as his waist were spread around the area, Gobber released the blue Nadder and the teens darted to the barricades sliding behind them quickly.

Hiccup's hand tightened on his blade, he found he had no desire to even try and fight he Nadder, being more aware now that the dragons were not nearly as dangerous as the Vikings believed than he had ever been before. He grimaced as he peered over the barricade, his glanced at his father again, the man excitedly watched him, he expected a show, Hiccup mentally chastised himself for succeeding in the other tests, why couldn't he of just faded into the background.

His eyes trailed over to the blond hair of Astrid as she peered over her barricade, gripping her axe tight enough her knuckles whitened, he knew exactly why he couldn't just fade into the background, he definitely wanted her to notice him, in the first two tests the two of them worked as a tight-knit team, even if he had gained more of a spotlight he didn't want that to end, he peered at the Nadder again, the dragons head snapped to him and it's eyes narrowed 'Well, it's about time I put my teammate in the spotlight.' He thought to himself as he ducked under the volley of spikes sent his way, he rolled out from the barricade and circled the arena, he dropped to a slide as more spikes flew at him, snapping around to his feet he darted towards the dragon, it squawked and hopped slightly, trying to bring its tail around, he lifted his shield and locked against it, the spikes grated against the wood as he heard Astrid let out a loud shout, her axe flew over his head, the Nadder tilted its beak and battered the weapon into the air, it clattered to the stone with a loud metallic clank. The tail pulled away from Hiccup's arm as the beast's maw descended at him, he jammed his shield in its jaw and the beast charged forward, Hiccup glanced over his shoulder and jumped into the air, the sole of his feet touched stone as he glared at the Nadder as it continued to force him into the wall, attempting to crush him, Hiccup pulled his arm free from the shield and pushed off the wall, rolling over the dragons head and sliding down it's back, he narrowly avoided the tail and vaulted a barricade as he grabbed another shield.

"That's my boy!" Stoick shouted excitedly, clapping a man beside him roughly on the shoulder and pointing at him.

Hiccup grimaced again, his plan had completely backfired as he peered over the barricade, the shield was still wedged in the dragons jaw as Astrid reacquired her axe, she dropped into a dead sprint as she charged the now incapacitated Nadder, it's wings extended threateningly as it launched its spikes at her, she folded her shield in front of her body and hid behind it, not slowing her pace as spikes continued to descend on the plank of wood, she battered the tail away with the shield and lifted the axe as the Nadder bit down hard, the shield splintered in its mouth and fire built up in its throat Astrid's eyes widened a the realization she was in no position to defend.

A black blur passed her vision, a loud wooden thud caused the fire blast to singe a strand of stray hair next to her ear, Astrid fell tot eh ground as Hiccup dragged his fingers across the Nadder's neck, the dragon stiffened and fell to the ground limply.

Astrid's eyes widened, the emerald behind the boys mask held the slightest flicker of what looked like pain when he looked down at her. She didn't realized it was relief that he had made it in time.

She gritted her teeth and glared at him 'Now's he's _pitying me?!_ ' Her mind growled angrily, she got to her feet quickly seething rage painted on her face as she watched Hiccup.

The boy could feel the blonde's gaze on his back, he shivered slightly, there was no way around it now, she was going to chase after him wherever he went after this.

"Are we done cause I'm kind of late for-." Hiccup cut off as Astrid pulled him around, placing the blade of the axe against his neck.

"What?! Late for _what,_ _ **EXACTLY?!**_ " He spat venomously

Gobber clasped the boy on the shoulder and Astrid was drawn around his side with his hook as the pair looked at the elder and Stoick.

"Okay, quiet down," Stoick commanded, the arena fell silent "The elder has decided."

A number of hushed whispers spread through the crowd, it seemed that the spectators were torn between Astrid and Hiccup, Hiccup let out a silent prayer for it to be Astrid.

Gobber hovered his hook over the blondes head, Gothi paused for only a moment before her head slight shake, Astrid's eyes widened and she turned her glare on Hiccup, the boy had never wished he didn't leave his forest more than at that moment.

Gobber's hand moved over Hiccups head, Gothi nodded pointing an aged finger at the boy with a small smile on her face.

Hiccup slumped as Gobber pulled the boy onto his shoulder "Oh, you've done it boy! You get to kill the dragon!"

Hiccup's eyes fell on Astrid's for a moment, they reflected a number of emotions, anger was the most prevalent, suspicion and something he couldn't place, it reminded him of hope. He frowned slightly as he threw and arm in the air "Yes, I can't wait I am soo-"

* * *

"Leaving." Hiccup voiced aloud as he entered the cove, looking around for Toothless "Come on, let's pack up, looks like me and you are taking a little vacation, forever." He added with a slightly pained shrug.

He looked around the cove, usually Toothless would be bounding towards him by now, especially since the dragon could fly when he was around, the Nightfury's lack of well, anything worried him.

'Was he found?!' Hiccups mind raced as his head darted around, the sound of stone grinding on metal caught his hearing and he snapped to a frame he recognized sitting atop a rock.

From Astrid's calm but furious expression he could at least be assured she didn't know about Toothless, but he was definitely in her crosshair at the moment.

"I want to know what's going on," She voiced simply, tone indicating if her heard a lie he would most surely regret it "You downed that Nadder with your palm, I don't care how many similarities dragons and wolves have, there is no way you would just try that suddenly in the heat of a moment like that!"

Her gratitude at saving her wasn't lost, a small voice in the back of her mind was attempting to fight control of her mind back to itself, but her anger was winning as she advanced towards Hiccup.

His emerald locked on her azure for a moment, fire meeting what would be easily considered a calm ocean and she faltered, her affection causing her to miss a step, she planted her foot harshly as anger reentered her system.

"I can't tell you how I know how to do that." Hiccup answered bravely, meeting her glare with a flat gaze.

Astrid practically snarled "Fine, I'll just have to beat it out of you." She threatened as he darted towards him, axe whirling around her body.

Hiccup wasn't unsurprised, he was aware anger was fueling most of her movements and decisions at the moment, his knife flew into his hand as he parried the axe swing and sidestepped, hopping on his feet in order to stay slightly out of her reach.

Toothless stayed still in his perch, watching his human and a female break into a fight, he could smell his humans affection for the blonde on from here and thought it best to stay out of it, if however, his human was put into real danger he would be the first to move.

Hiccup dodged again 'If I can get rid of the axe I might be able to calm her down,' He thought hopefully as he spun out of the way of another blow, he locked his knife into the curve of the blade towards Astrid's hand and yanked hard, the girl was already unbalanced from her strike, the axe slipped from her hand, the knife and the axe embedded into a tree not far from then, the knife securely locking the axe in its position as it buried itself in the wood.

Astrid gritted her teeth as she charged the boy, hand to hand combat was not exactly her strongest point, but it was by no means her weakest, she threw a quick set of punches that Hiccup weaved around, a thought occurred to her as he blocked the kick aimed at his head.

'He's not attacking me at all.' She wondered in surprise, at how someone could be assaulted so viscously and not hit back at all, she mistook the gesture that he thought she wasn't worth his effort, despite an equally loud voice telling her it was because of his kindness.

Anger won again, only barely as she flipped into a forward roll, planting both her feet against his armguard with a loud thud, she crouched against him and drew a small dagger from her boot, the weapon flipped in front of Hiccup's eyes and he momentarily rolled his eyes 'Of course she has a dagger too.' He thought to himself as she caught the weapon and brought it down, the dagger grazed against the black of his leather mask, opening a small white scratch over the left eye, if Astrid was being completely honest, it actually made the helmet considerably more badass, but the thought occurred in the farthest reaches of her mind.

Hiccup darted forward, grabbing her wrist and pulled it around her back he locked the appendage with a firm grip and the dagger clattered against the ground.

Toothless continued to observe in silent curiosity, he had almost jumped into action when the second weapon appeared, but the lack of fear he sensed from his human had stopped him.

Astrid paused as Hiccup held her arm, the girl spun, kicking her foot back and causing his grip to slacken, she pulled her arm free and spun around, not before Hiccup kicked the dagger into the lake, Astrid darted forward, grabbing the boys arm and slamming her body into his chest, he let out a grunt as she pulled him over her arm, he flipped around his feet landing on the ground with a thud, he reversed Astrid's grip and the two spun in what mimicked a strange dance of each of them trying to gain leverage of the other, Hiccup spun Astrid away as her leg flew over his head, she darted back towards him and threw a quick punch.

Hiccup watched the girl in front of him, they way she moved, the she looked at him, with those striking azure eyes, they shined ever so slightly in the light, the way her hair bobbed around her as she twisted and turned, his eyes fell lastly on her mouth, the slightly rosy lips, her arm sped towards him and he caught it in his hand, he threw his helmet off and pulled her towards him.

Astrid's eyes widened when his helmet was pushed off his head and he pulled her forward, placing his lips against hers, the action took her completely by surprise, her eyes widened her arms went limp and she just stared at the boys closed eyes for a few docile seconds, her anger drained from her body as she finally responded, eyes drifting closed as her arms wrapped around his neck, ruffling his hair ever so slightly as he pecked at her bottom lip when the pulled away.

Her brain lagged a few seconds behind, the heat of his body completely enveloped her, his scent filled her nose causing all of her previous accusations to suddenly evaporate, he eyed her cautiously afraid of what she might do.

Astrid shook her head and snapped out of her daze, she hit the boy in front of her with her fist, hard enough to make him bounced back and let a grunt as the air in his lungs was forced through his nose "That's for kissing me out of nowhere!"

He chuckled when she pushed a stray hair behind her ear, she shifted slightly closer to him and pulled him by the collar, planting another lingering kiss on his lips "That's for…helping me calm down."

Hiccup titled his head and smirked "Anytime milady." He flourished and bowed, Astrid moved over the tree to retrieve her axe, she tossed his blade back to him silently, he sheathed the weapon quickly and looked around.

Toothless had had enough hiding, he exited his perch and hopped towards Hiccup quietly, the boy heard Astrid gasp and his head whipped around as the Nightfury tilted it's head to the side curiously wondering who the newcomer was, Hiccup lifted a hand towards the dragon and Astrid's mind snapped into combat mode as she yanked her axe from the tree, she let out a cry as she ran towards the Nightfury, Toothless eyes narrowed ever so slightly, Hiccup moved in between them as the Nightfury pounced towards her, he grabbed her axe and threw it along the ground, before stopping Toothless, the dragon paused against his hands.

"It's okay, it's okay!" Hiccup shouted in explanation, Astrid froze on the ground as Toothless paused, his eyes dilating slightly, although not nearly as much as when he was alone with Hiccup "You just scared him." Hiccup explained to Astrid calmly.

" _I_ scared _him?_ " She shot at him incredulously.

"He's not dangerous Astrid." Hiccup attempted to explain

"Who even is _he_?" She demanded

"Toothless, Astrid," Hiccup gestured from the dragon to her "Astrid Toothless."

A very sharp Toothed growl followed as Astrid frowned at the boy, the look on her face was one of shock and hurt, honestly he did feel like he had kind of stomped on her trust completely, he ran a hand through the hair as she got to her feet and ran out of the cove.

Toothless made a sound that sounded similar to 'good riddance' as he moved away on his hind legs.

"Da, da da, were dead." Hiccup sounded with a slump, turning around.

"Whoa! Where are you going?" Hiccup chased after Toothless quickly, jumping on the dragons back.

* * *

They took off after Astrid quickly, said girl was hopping over a log when Toothless grabbed a hold of her arm, they pulled her up and the dragon unceremoniously dumped her in the top of a tree before landing on it, the tree groaned under the weight but did not snap.

Astrid glared at the dragon, even if she was surprised to see Hiccup riding it, she didn't show it "Hiccup! Get me _down_ from here!" She demanded angrily, pulling herself up the tree slightly.

"Astrid, please you have to let me explain." Hiccup attempted to defend.

"I am not listening to _anything_ you have to say." Astrid spat at him.

"Then I won't speak," Hiccup sounded resolutely "Just let me show you."

Astrid watched the boy, the almost begging puppy dog eyes he was giving her caused her face to soften immediately, as much as she would rather not to, she still like the boy in front her. He held his hand to her as she moved towards him. She moved it away and climbed onto the saddle, resisting every urge in her body to grab a hold of the boy in front of her tightly.

"Okay," She voiced nervously "Now get me down."

"Toothless, down," Hiccup patted the dragons neck "Gently." He added after a moment.

Hiccup tilted his foot, the tail opened and Toothless extended his wings "See, nothing to worry-." He cut off into a scream as Toothless launched into the sky.

The unexpected movement caused Astrid to begin to fall back, a loud scream broke form her mouth as her legs caught a hold of Hiccup's back, she used them to pull herself against him, her arms wrapped around his chest as she held on for dear life.

"Toothless! We need her to _like_ us!" Hiccup shouted over the roaring wind, the dragon heard him but paid no mind, nobody and he meant nobody, treated him or his human that way and got away Scott-free.

Toothless turned down, spinning his body in every direction, Astrid screamed in terror as the ground and sky melded into one amorphous blob of color and she could no longer tell up from down.

"Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile." Hiccup voiced sarcastically, silently praying Toothless would level out before they hit the ground.

Astrid's nail dug into Hiccup's chest and he winced when she finally spoke "Okay! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, just get me off of this thing!" She shouted in fear.

Hiccup's eyes softened as he examined the girls expression, she was only a few inches from him, her eyes scrunched tightly closed, fists grabbing him to tightly her knuckles had whitened.

Toothless very abruptly leveled out, hovering in the air calmly, a small grin on the dragons face didn't go unnoticed by Hiccup, the boy rolled his eyes, the action moved his shoulders slightly and prompted Astrid to open her eyes, she stared at the sunset in bewilderment, a sigh of sheer awe escaping her lips, Toothless ascended through the clouds gently, Astrid lifted her arms into the fluffy white formations, she was surprised when she pulled them back down to see small droplets of water on ice on her arms, the finally peaked the cloud formation and popped up above them, they were greeted by a large glowing full moon and millions of stars, both the teens smiled gently as they took in the sight, Astrid's arms wrapped around Hiccup's waist gently and her head rested on his shoulder as they began descending, a sudden squawk caught Hiccup's ear as his eyes darted around, he could barely make out other dragons around them.

Astrid noticed a moment after, Toothless trembled ever so slightly beneath him, Hiccup and Astrid flattened themselves against the Nightfury's back.

"What's going on?" Astrid questioned, looking around.

Hiccup's eyes narrowed as he peered through the clouds around him, the dragons were carrying sheep, fish, pretty much any piece of food they could get their claws on "It looks like, they are um, hauling in their kill." The boy explained

"So, what does that make us?" Astrid questioned fearfully.

"Don't worry, Toothless can't fly without me and I won't leave you behind." Hiccup replied strongly, his tone did give her some comfort as her hold on him tightened.

"Toothless you gotta her us out of her bud." Hiccup whispered to the dragon quietly.

Toothless gave him a quick growl, giving Hiccup the impression of 'working on it' as Toothless entered a cave, he quickly pulled up and landed on a high perch, waiting for the stream of dragons to get into the nest.

"Well, it's satisfying to know that all our food is being dumped down a hole." Hiccup voiced as he watched the horde of dragons drop the food into the mist.

"They're not eating any of it." Astrid voiced in confusion.

The horde of dragons dispersed, a slower Gronkle hovered above the mist, spitting a single small fish down the hole, before attempting to hover away, a loud growl shook the cavern and Hiccup could recognize the fear on the dragons face from where he was.

"What was that?" Astrid asked worriedly

The massive head of a dragon emerged from the missed, closing around the Gronkle with a loud snap, Hiccup's eyes widened and Astrid's face paled, the monstrous dragon began returning to the mist before one it's eyes flickered over Toothless, the Nightfury whimpered slightly as Hiccup opened the tail, he gave Toothless a reassuring rub and the dragon launched into eh air as the pillar they were was crushed, Toothless sped down the cave they had entered from and into the night air.

* * *

As they landed Astrid was the first to dismount, quickly retrieving her axe "It all makes sense, it's like a giant beehive they are the workers and that's their queen, it controls them." She voiced as she grabbed her weapon.

"No, a queen wouldn't just kill something that displeases her," Hiccup shook his head "That's more like a dictatorship."

Astrid just shrugged.

"I knew something was off about the dragon attacks, animals make it a point to avoid humans, the only time attacks of that scale happen is due to fear or during mating season, it's the _only_ time and animal will behave so erratically." Hiccup explained as he dismounted Toothless, he ran a hand through his hair.

"We have to tell your dad." Astrid voiced simply.

"No, wait," Hiccup caught her wrist "We can't."

"Hiccup, we just discovered the dragons nest, the thing we've been after since Vikings first settled here," She responded "And you want to keep it a secret, to protect your pet dragon are you serious?" She asked in surprise.

"Yes." Hiccup replied resolutely, Astrid paused and nodded her head in acceptance.

"So, what are you going to do?" She asked curiously

"I don't know." Hiccup replied.

"Hiccup, your final exam is tomorrow," Astrid pointed out "You don't have a lot of time."

"I know," Hiccup exclaimed in annoyance pulling on his hair and kicking a rock in anger "I know, I have to figure something out, I don't even know where to start how do you end a three hundred year war in an hour?!"

Astrid pursed her lips, pointing out anything else he had to worry about would just have the reverse effect, she shifted towards him slowly and punched him lightly on the arm.

"Ow." He glanced at her in surprise.

" _That's_ for kidnapping me." He shot at him, trying and failing to hide the playful grin on her face.

She grabbed his hand and pulled him into her, giving him a light peck on the cheek, his hand jumped to the point and rubbed at it slowly "That's for….everything else." She added slowly before darting off.

Even she thought it a little odd, that she was suddenly embarrassed by a kiss on the cheek, but she had been coming off an adrenaline high when it happened, being hyper aware of him now only made it worse as she moved towards her home. Stopping once at the entrance of the cove to take a quick glance behind her.

Toothless made what appeared to be a teasing snort towards the boy, who shrugged and simply responded with "What?"

She chuckled into her hand as she continued home.

Hiccup sighed in worry as he stared at the ceiling, sleep completely eluding him 'I just hope this works.' He thought to himself as he rolled over, he let out a silent prayer as exhaustion finally pushed him into sleep.

* * *

 **A/N: There, it is, the conclusion of my romance subplot for the Hiccstrid of this story, I hope it wasn't too obvious (I mean, the way in unfolded not the relationship itself.) and I also hope you enjoyed it, the next two chapters will be the finishing of the first movie! *queues confetti, one lousy streamer falls the ground disappointingly* Well, yeah, again I hope you enjoyed this chapter and again, if you have an idea for a funny section for the Rider's of Berk or something you'd like to see hit me with them and I will see what I can do! Of course, my standard ending, I hope you guys enjoyed and I will see you in the next one, Peace!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I really want to ge through the first movie quickly, this chapter will actually go into a little more detail surrounding Hiccup's childhood in the wilds, I am excited to get into the TV series, pretty much my motivation for getting two chapters in a day, (It's a first for me actually.) although I am technically rewriting this because one of my siblings closed the first version while I was out of the room (It was at 4500 words too.) but, without further ado, enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

Hiccup took a deep breath, his exhale echoed around his small helmet as he entered the arena, the white scratch over the otherwise black helmet glinted slightly as it caught the light, the boy glanced back at the entrance ramp, he gave Astrid a small reassuring smile, he had figured out she knew he was smiling even when the mask was on.

Hiccup picked a shield off the ground and pulled it onto his arm, clenching his fist and shifting it slightly as he locked eyes with Gobber and nodded, the one handed blacksmith pulled the leaver quickly, as the locking mechanism lifted slowly Hiccup took another deep breath, the sound echoed around his head as he focused, a single memory bounced on the edge of his memory.

 _Just because you show an animal respect, that doesn't mean it will show it in return, sometimes, no matter what you do, respect must be earned, there is a fine line between earning respect and being feared, being respected is always harder but it's not without its rewards._

The memory cut off as the cage slammed open, Hiccup locked his eyes with the golden eyes of the Nightmare, it growled and lit itself on fire as it approached him, Hiccup lifted his hand slowly as he watched it, the nightmare inched closer to him, sniffing at his fingertips slowly before it shook it's head a low growl echoing from the pit of its body as it rolled back on its feet before diving forward, attempting to snap it's jaws around Hiccup.

The armored boy jumped into the air, landing lightly atop the Nightmares name, it's eyes openly challenged him as it's body ignited, Hiccup jumped back flipping over and landing with a light thud, Hiccup drew his blade quickly, the steel glinted against the scarred helmet as he turned his body and dropped into a dead sprint 'If that's how it's going to be.' He thought flatly.

"Go on Hiccup! Give it to him!" The Vikings cheered from the stands, the boy spun quickly to avoid a blast of fire, Stoick leaned forward in his chair, something about how his son had started gave him a bad feeling.

Hiccup darted forward, bring the blade up he cut across the Nightmares side, the blade chinked off the Nightmares teeth as he dropped into a slide, he slammed his boot into the dragons leg, the beast toppled as it lost its balance Hiccup scrambled over and slammed his weapon back in its sheath and bolted over the dragons back, grabbing a hold of the Nightmares horns he forced it's head into the ground, a single gold eye peered up at him in surprise, he locked his gaze on the eye and the pupil of the dragon began to dilate.

"Stop the fight." Stoick ordered getting to his feet, the feeling only worsening every moment he watched the fight unfold.

"No, You need to see this more than anyone else." Hiccup shot at his father as he released the Nightmare, the beast took a few steps away from him and lifted its head, eyeing the boy calmly, it's head dropping towards the ground.

Stoick growled as he swung his hammer down into the side of the cage "I said stop the fight!" the ringing noise reverberated around the arena, Hiccup's eyes widened as the Nightmare's pupils narrowed on him, he dived out of the way of the beast as it charged him, he cursed under his breath as rolled over his shield, pulling the thing over his back as a fire blast slammed into it.

Astrid grabbed an axe of the wall and used it wedge the gate open enough to slide under, darting into the arena she grabbed a hammer and tossed it at the Nightmare, the weapon found home slamming into the side of the dragons head and knocking it down for a moment.

"Astrid!" Hiccup boomed, the girl realized the dragon was after her now.

* * *

Toothless ears perked up as it heard the sound of his humans voice, he could hear the urgency in it from this distance, Toothless clambered to his feet, glaring at the rock wall angrily before scaling the tree in the ground, using it as a platform to jump up the rocks, its claws raked the dirt as it pulled itself out of the cove and took off towards Hiccups voice.

* * *

Hiccup ran across the arena as Astrid ran towards him, she dropped into a slid as he jumped slamming his entire body weight and the shield into the side of the Nightmares head, effectively drawing it's attention back to him, Hiccup flipped his blade in his hand as he heard a familiar whistle, his eyes widened as he watched Toothless dive at the arena, blasting a hole in the side of the cage as he landed atop of the nightmare, the nightmare let out a hiss in surprise as the Nightfury locked around its neck, the nightmare threw the Nightfury off as attempted to bite down on him, Toothless caught the beasts head in his claws and kicked, the Nightmare was thrown backwards as Toothless rolled to his feet, putting himself in between the nightmare and the two teens, the Nightmare gave up after a couple of seconds of the Nightfury's growls.

Hiccup ran to in front of Toothless and pushed him "Alright bud you gotta get out of here."

Toothless made a noise and Hiccup practically begged him to leave, the Nightfury refused as a Viking jumped atop it's back, forcing it's head to the ground, Stoick walked over to the pair and gave his son a glare, Spitelout held and axe towards Stoick, he reached for it as he looked down at the dragon, still staring at Hiccup silently, not even resisting the Vikings atop of it.

Stoick pushed the weapon away "Put it with the others." He barked gruffly, turning to Hiccup angrily "You, Great Hall, now." He ordered flatly

Hiccup shot a glare at his father's back as he followed the large man. Astrid just watched in stunned silence as she looked around the wreck of an arena, other Vikings were leading the Nightmare back into its cage.

* * *

Hiccup staggered as his father pushed him into the hall, the boy whirled around but his father spoke first.

"So everything in the ring was a trick?" He demanded angrily

"I see it as knowledge, I learned more about dragons in the past three weeks by befriending one than any Viking has ever learned from killing them!" Hiccup shouted

"They have killed hundreds of us Hiccup!" Stoick shouted

"And we've killed thousands of them!" Hiccup argued "You have no idea what's on their island dad, it's a dragon like I've never seen!"

"Their island? So you've been to the nest?" Stoick's eyes glowed dangerously as he spoke.

Hiccup took a step back "No, dad you don't understand-"

"How did you find it?!" Stoick demanded

"I didn't, Toothless did, only a dragon can find the island." Hiccup answered

Stoick straightened as realization dawned on his face.

"Dad, no, please, you really will die, you don't have any idea what you're walking into!" Hiccup shouted worriedly.

Stoick turned around wordlessly and walked towards the door, pausing just before he left to speak again "If you would give that much to protect them, you're not a Viking…You're not my son."

Hiccup's protests died in his throat as his father left the room, Hiccup just stared at the closed door in silence.

Stoick staggered slightly and wavered as the weight of what he had just done landed on him heavily, squaring his shoulders he descended the steps "Ready the ships!" He ordered with a roar.

Astrid arrived in the square to see Hiccup run into the forest, she sprinted after him, both in confusion and curiosity.

* * *

Hiccup finally came to a huffing stop by the tree he had tied Toothless too when he had first started learning how to use the Nightfury's tail, he fell beside it heavily, tracing a set of runes he had carved into the tree trunk slowly.

"It's been a long time, Vonor," He opened, voice tight as he tried desperately not to cry.

Astrid arrived a few moments after him, she paused as she listened to the boy carefully.

"I think I really messed up this time," He continued as he watched the Vikings fleet pull out of the bay, Toothless on the front ship "I found my dad, well, he found me, just like you said he would, you could have told me you were my grandmother you know."

"I got his attention exactly how you said I should, although in hindsight I see how turning away the merchants on the shadier side was probably a joke, it got the job done." Hiccup got out slowly.

He choked out jokingly, a tear finally falling from his face "I shot down a Nightfury, the first Viking to ever to do it…" He bit back a sob as he spoke through gritted teeth "After that I befriended him, I even flew him!" He exclaimed excitedly as he finally broke down, shoulders shaking as he buried his face in his palms.

"I know you sent me away because you were sick, I don't even know where you died, I just carved your name here cause I needed something to remember you by," He got out with a sob "It looks like I lost my home again."

He felt someone's hand land on his shoulder and give it a reassuring squeeze, he turned to Astrid and gave her a weak smile.

"It wasn't all bad though," Hiccup said, finally starting to feel better, the gears in his head starting to formulate a plan as he spoke "I met the most beautiful girl," He explained, squeezing Astrid's hand lightly, the girl blushed scarlet but didn't speak, just smiled warmly as the boy continued to speak "You would like her, she hits me when I do stupid stuff as well."

A dry laugh escaped his throat as the wind pulled at his hair "You know, I know exactly what you would say right about now," Hiccup rose to his feet, resolute determination settling into his eyes "If I want a place in Berk I just have to make it right? Forge it with my own hands."

Hiccup stared at his palms for a moment before he spoke again "That's exactly what I'm going to do."

The boy grabbed Astrid's hand as he fell back into a dead sprint towards the arena "Hiccup, What's your plan?"

"It's definitely something stupid." He called back "I need you to gather everyone at the arena."

Astrid nodded her head and turned towards the square, the group arrived a few moments after Hiccup.

* * *

"If you're planning on being eaten, I'd definitely go with the Gronkle." Fishlegs voiced as he entered.

Hiccup laughed mirthlessly as he opened the Nightmares cage, Snotlout let out a fearful groan and reached for a broken spearhead at his feet, Astrid caught the movement and advised against it with a quick shake of the head.

Hiccup eyed the Nightmare flatly, giving it a firm reminder he would not be dealing with any Loki business at the this point, he was running on a clock.

He reached his hand out towards the dragon slowly, it sniffed at his hand as he placed it against its snout, it's pupils dilated as he began to lead it out of its cage, backing to beside Snotlout, Hiccup grabbed the larger boys hand, Snotlout only pulled back a single time in fear, Hiccup simply hummed in annoyance as he placed the boys hand against the dragons nose, it's eyes shifted from Hiccup to Snotlout and a contented purr-like sound erupted from the Nightmare.

Hiccup smirked at his work as he walked away.

"Whoa, wait! Where are you going?!" Snotlout exclaimed in worry.

Hiccup picked up a large length of rope "You're going to need something to help you hold on." Hiccup explained glancing at the other dragons as they approached the teens carefully, the other teens mimicked Hiccups example, slowly approaching the dragons and placing their hands on the snouts.

Hiccup cut the strips of rope accordingly as the group of teens moved around their dragons slowly "This is a really stupid plan." Astrid noted from the side of her Nadder, the dragon nudged her shoulder and Squawked in what seemed like agreement.

"Actually, I think it's more of a crazy plan." Hiccup replied calmly as he pulled the rope tight.

* * *

Stoick turned the large Viking ship one last time as it ran aground on the Dragons island, he moved to the front of the ship and vaulted it, stone crunched underfoot as he landed, the low buzzing that had been plaguing his ears since they entered the fog abruptly ceased, the other ships pull against the island after him, the Vikings unloaded and moved about, preparing a defensive line in front of the ships and setting up large catapults, Stoick drew out a quick battle plan splitting the army of Vikings into three groups, each to attack a few minutes after the last, effectively drawing the dragons out and boxing them in.

"When we crack this mountain open, all hel is going to break loose." Stoick noted as he watched the side of the mountain closely.

"And my undies, good thing I brought spares." Gobber joked with Spitelout, the man just groaned and moved to join his battalion.

Gobber rolled his eyes "Nobody appreciates good comedy these days." He said with a shrug, the blacksmith noticed the look on the chiefs face.

"Stoick, there's nothing you can do about it now," Gobber clasped his hand over the man's shoulder "Just get back safe and apologize."

"If Hiccup was right Gobber, none of us will be coming back." Stoick responded flatly

"Well," Gobber shrugged "There's a first time for everything isn't there?"

Stoick shook his head slightly as he moved to the front of his line, he lifted a hand and closed his fist, the catapults swung into action, battering the side of the mountain with large boulders, the hollow nest cracked and splintered before a large section of the wall fell away, Stoick walked towards the hole, peering inside the massive expanse of black, he gave another signal, a ball was lit on fire and launched down the hole, illuminating it, the walls were covered in greens, red, blues, and browns Stoick's eyes widened only a moment as a loud battle cry ripped from his lounge, it was chorused by the men and women behind him as the charged forward, the dragons took flight, completely ignoring the people below them as they moved into the clouds.

A shout of victory rang through the lines, Stoick frowned, he felt the ground beneath him shake and he turned back to the hole, realizing the ground beneath him was splitting apart.

"This isn't over, form your ranks and stay together!" He shouted as he was forced to dive out of the way, a massive dragon slamming through the wall, Gobber's jaw dropped at the sheer size of the monstrosity in front of him.

"Catapults!" Stoick roared as he ran beneath the monster of a dragon.

"Fire!" The men operating the catapults shouted, the rocks bounced off the massive Dragon as not even seeming it irritate the beast as it closed its massive jaw over one of the siege engines, reducing it to splinters in seconds.

"Get to the ships!" A Viking shouted fearfully

"No!" Stoick shouted, attempting to divert the dragons attention, it's maw opened and fire bellowed from it, igniting the entire fleet in a matter of second, it crushed another catapult underfoot.

"Lead the men to the far side of the island." Stoick ordered simply, taking a slow step towards the dragon.

"I think I'm gonna stick around, since you look set on doing something stupid." Gobber voiced as he moved beside the large man.

"I can by the men a couple of minutes if I give that thing something to hunt." Stoick explained clenching his fist

Gobber clasped his own fist with the other mans "Then I can double that time." The two shared a small smirk as Stoick moved away from the one armed blacksmith.

"HERE!" He bellowed

"Oh, no you don't, HERE!" Gobber bellowed louder, moving in the opposite direction.

Stoick flipped one of the large spears from the ground and loosed it at the beast, it clattered against the dragons skin just under its eye, the dragon locked onto him, moving a massive foot over the top of the chief.

"Come on then, Fight me!" Gobber roared, waving his arms about, the dragon's attention as drawn away and it's foot fell a little to the side of Stoick, showering him with small pebbles.

A loud explosion rocked the air around the dragon as a set of dragons flew passed it, Stoick's' eyes widened in surprise when he noticed that they were the dragons from the arena, each one being ridden by one of the teenagers from the village, save for the Nadder, he could recognize the black armor of Hiccup anywhere now, the boy was behind Astrid, looking amongst the ships, he pointed something out and the girl flew low.

"Fish, break it down!" Hiccup shouted over the screams.

"Heavily armored head and tail, used for bashing and crushing, small eyes, large nostrils relies on hearing and smell." He shouted quickly.

"Snot, Legs, hang in its blind spot, make some noise keep it confused, Ruff, Tuff, find out if it has a shot limit." Hiccup ordered quickly, the twins looked at him in confusion.

The boy sighed "Make it mad!" He clarified.

"Oh, That's my specialty," Ruff smirked "Since when, everyone knows I'm more annoying," Tuff argued, flipping himself upside down "See." He began making a slew of random sounds.

"Would you just go." Hiccup shouted, the twins complied.

Hiccup moved over the Nadder and dropped onto the boat, Toothless pulled against his restraints as the boy landed "Go help the others." Astrid nodded and sped off.

Hiccup drew his blade and cut the muzzle away from Toothless, the dragon let out a happy warble to see him.

"Yeah, I'm happy to see you two bud." He said as he yanked on the chain, Toothless turned his head and opened his mouth gas building in his mouth as a shadow fell over the top of them, the massive dragons foot descended, snapping the boat underfoot like it was a twig, Hiccup gritted his teeth and pulled at the chain angrily, something grabbed a hold of his back and yanked him from the water, he landed on a rock with a cough and sat up, looking at the person in confusion, seeing his dad dive back under the water.

Stoick eyed the dragon for a long moment before he broke the wooden restraint, the dragon growled at him and yanked him from the water, landing atop a rock with a quick gesture for Hiccup to get on, as it shook the last remaining droplet from its body.

Hiccup nodded his head with a smirk "You got it bud." He bolted upright and jumped onto the dragons back, only pausing when his father grabbed his hand.

Hiccup eyed the man in confusion, Stoick smiled warmly at him "Hiccup, I'm sorry."

Hiccup froze for a moment "It's okay, I figured trying to change three hundred years in an hour might have been a bit of an overstep even for me." The boy joked.

"I am proud to call you my son," Stoick continued as if Hiccup hadn't spoke, glancing over the boys head "You don't have to go up there."

Hiccup glanced at the fight in front of him "Yeah I do, I got them into this mess." He gestured to the other teens "It's only fair I get them out."

Toothless launched from the ground, Astrid was circling the battle slowly noticed the black dragon take to the sky "He's up!" She shouted, the teens quickly fell into the plan, Snotlout and Fishlegs hovered on either side of its head, banging their weapons against their shields, Ruffnut and Tuffnut flew passed the massive dragons head, an explosion shaking the beasts head and drawing its attention to them.

"Troll," Tuffnut called "Butt elf." Ruffnut followed, the dragon growled a stream of fire flew passed the teens as they banked right out of the way.

Snotlout failed to noticed the noise was effecting his own dragon, it lulled dangerously to the side before ht dragon brought its head around, knocking the boy off his dragons back and leaving him stranded atop its massive head, two more sets of eyes opened as Fishleg's Gronkle fell victim to the noise, the pair began to topple "I've lost power on the Gronkle, Snotlout do something!" The large Viking shouted tossing his mace to the black haired boy.

The Gronkle slid along the ground "I'm okay!" Fishlegs exclaimed throwing his hands in the air, the Gronkle's body rolled forward, planting the boy in the stones as it laid atop his back "Less okay." He amended from the ground.

Hiccup flattened his body to Toothless's back, dropping a powerful shot in the dragons side, Snotlout swatted at the things eyes with his mace, the dragons shot at Hiccup missed due to the distraction, Astrid flew passed the boy.

"Good job Snotlout!" She shouted over the dragons angry roar, in his moment of distraction Snotlout whacked another eye and the dragon bucked, sending the boy into the air he slipped off the edge of the dragon and Astrid circled around diving passed she caught the boys foot and flipped him upright, dropping him off a safe distance from the dragon. As she attempted to regain height the dragon behind her drew in a breath, Astrid lowered on the dragons back as it strained to get away from the vacuum, Hiccup glanced at the scene for a moment, his eyes narrowed as Toothless and himself dived, the fireball slammed into the beast mouth, it's snap narrowly missed the girl and her Nadder, although she was knocked loose, falling headfirst towards the ground, she let out a scream as Toothless flipped over quickly, and shot passed the still recovering dragon, catching Astrid's leg in a claw.

"Did you get her?" Hiccup asked curiously.

Toothless bent his head down, Astrid smiled up at the Nightfury, the jet-black dragon smiled it's gummy smile at her.

'Toothless.' She thought to herself as the dragon set her down.

Hiccup gave her a quick nod as he took off again, rolling his shoulders on the back of his dragon as he glanced at their opponent, he noticed something on it' back "That thing has wings," He thought aloud turning Toothless in to drop another shot into its back "Let's bring it in _our_ territory bud." Hiccup patted Toothless neck encouragingly.

Toothless let out a growl of agreement as they shot passed the monsters field of vision, Hiccup and Toothless looped in the air, the Nightfury's mouth glowed a moment before another powerful blast slammed into the things back, it fell to the ground with a roar that shook the island, it's wings cracked and rocks fell from the as it slowly stretched them out.

Hiccup glanced behind them as the beast rose into the air "Hah! Well it can get off the ground." He shouted through his mask, lowering against Toothless the pair picked up speed again, rifling passed the gathered Vikings on the back of the Nightfury.

They let out cheers as he passed, before falling into silence when the massive monster chasing them slammed through the pillars of rock.

Hiccup's eyes darted around, trying to find advantages they could use, his eyes went to the sky and a smirk fell on his face "Time to end this bu." He practically whispered into Toothless's ear as they lifted into the air, breaking through cloud after dark cloud, thunder clapped around them as they continued to ascend.

Just as the massive dragons mouth was about to close on them, Hiccup turned them abruptly though the clouds, the beast's chomp came up empty in the sky as its head moved around wildly, looking for any sign of the Nightfury and it's human rider.

"This is _our_ territory." Hiccup growled as they turned in towards it, Toothless let a blast slam into the beasts wing, spinning over the appendage as the again disappeared into the clouds.

Rotating around, Toothless and Hiccup struck the webbing of the large dragons wings repeatedly, before disappearing, Hiccup hovered above it a moment and quickly counted the holes they had made, the dived again, another one opening in the right wing as he disappeared, the beast loosed a thundering roar and exhaled fire in every direction, Hiccup felt his hair stand on end as a sudden heat him, his eyes widened in realization as he flipped over, he glanced at the tail to find the edge beginning to smolder.

He rolled his shoulders as he once again settled on Toothless back, the dived straight down, hitting the beast with another blast to the face for good measure, Both Rider and Dragon glared at the beast challengingly as they passed it, the monstrous dragon's eyes widened and its nose flared in anger as it descended after them.

Hiccup didn't pull back as the pair plummeted to the ground, only rotating enough so that he could see the maw of the beast behind him, it was practically glaring at them as they descended like a black bullet.

Toothless and Hiccup didn't need to make a sound as they waited, every fiber of their being tensed, the dragon's mouth opened and Hiccup could see and hear the telltale sound that warned of a fire blast.

"Toothless, end it!" Toothless spun, launching a quick blast into the massive dragons mouth, the gas in its throat erupted as Toothless spread his wings, Hiccup and the Nightfury snapped up passed the monsters eyes, it opened its wings, the holes in them began to rip wider as he slammed into the ground, fire erupting from it, Hiccup and Toothless dodged each explosion as the fire forced its way out of every pore of the dragons body, Hiccup's eyes widened at a sudden realization, the tail swung back into their path as the tail snapped off completely, the tail slammed him loose of Toothless's back, the boy reached for Toothless, gritting his teeth as he used every muscle in his body to try and close a few more inches, Toothless angled his body enough and forced himself down with power flaps, Hiccups hand caught the dragons claw, it drew him in and pulled its wings around him, not before the inferno caught his left leg, Hiccup bit down on his arm guard and loosed a roaring scream of pain as he felt the appendage practically incinerate, the pain caused him to pass out after moment, but not before many of the Vikings closest to the crash heard the sound.

As the dust settled Astrid and Stoick pushed their way to the front, the only thing that stopped Astrid from rushing out to find Hiccup was Stoick was already ahead of her, falling to his knee's as he neared the downed Nightfury.

The saddle was shredded, the connecting metal rods flayed and spiking out in random directions, Toothless eyes cracked open and it watched Stoick carefully.

"Oh, son." Stoick deflated, shaking his head despairingly as he spoke softly.

Astrid took a tentative step forward, hands clasped over her mouth as she moved towards the Nightfury, tears welled up in her eyes as she noticed the state of the saddle, on her arrival Toothless let out a pained groan, opening his wings slowly, Hiccup fell to the ground beside him, Stoick rushed forward picking his son up quickly, ripping off the boys helmet and pressing his ear to his chest, a labored but rhythmic thud beat against his ears, an ecstatic smile broke out on his face as he hugged his boy to his chest.

"He's alive," the man choked out happily, voice cracking with relief "You brought him back alive!"

The crowd cheered, Astrid shot forward, wrapping her arms around the boys neck tightly, tears falling against his chest piece, Stoick sat back slightly as Hiccup's arm came to rest tiredly on her back.

"A-Astrid, c-can't breathe." He murmured.

She loosened her hold on him and leaned back, before slamming her lips against his. Stoick turned to the Nightfury, a grateful smile on his face "Thank you, for saving my boy."

The dragon bowed it's head calmly, Gobber padded up beside the chief "Well, most of him." He corrected with a shrug, Astrid and Stoick's attention was drawn to the now missing left leg.

Astrid gasped and Stoick's face hardened.

"Heh, What was it you said, 'It's only fun if you get a scar out of it?'" Hiccup quipped, before falling back into unconsciousness.

"We should get him back to Gothi quickly, make sure it's not infected, I can build him a leg that'll be as good a new, don't you worry about that." Gobber both suggested and boasted.

* * *

Hiccup awoke again, this time, he noticed two things instantly, he wasn't being death hugged, even if the kiss afterwards was welcome, the second, was that he was inside, a warble emanated from his left and his eyes fell on Toothless.

"I'm in my house," He sighed in relief, his eyes drifting closed, before they widened again in surprise " _Your_ in my house too?!"

Toothless bounced around excitedly, Hiccup pulled the blanket back and sat up, moving to get off the bed before he noticed something and paused, he looked at his left leg slowly, he grimaced as he couldn't feel anything passed the knee, he set it against the floorboards slowly, he took a deep breath and pushed himself to his feet he took a normal step and leaned a small amount of weight on the prosthetic, he buckled at the change and fell forward, flopping against Toothless's head heavily, he gave the dragon and light pat.

"Thanks bud." Using the dragon as a half crutch as he half hopped, half dragged himself to the front door, he opened it, a Nightmare snarled at him and he fell against the door.

"Toothless, stay here." He opened the door again, this time to see Snotlout on the back of said Nightmare, calling to Fishlegs and the twins who chased after him as he sped off.

Hiccup limped out the door, looking around the village, dragons were everywhere, he saw some of the oldest Vikings on the backs of Gronkle's, his eyes widened at a sudden realization.

"I knew it, I'm dead." He shrugged, eyebrows mimicking the movement.

A laugh caught his attention and his father placed a hand on his shoulder "Hah, no but you gave it your best shot." He nodded his head slowly.

"This is Berk now, turns out all we needed was a little bit of, well, this." Stoick explained slowly, gesturing to Hiccup.

"You just gestured to all of me." Hiccup slumped sarcastically.

"Well, most of you anyway, that bits mine," Gobber gestured to the prosthetic "With a little Hiccup flare through and in, think it'll do?"

Hiccup leaned on it lightly and shrugged "I might make a few tweaks." He shrugged

Gobber just chuckled, someone pointed at Hiccup and shouted, a crowd quickly gathered at the front of house "The Hero of Berk!" One man shouted

"Vanquisher of the Red Death!" Another chorused.

Hiccup glanced at his father in confusion "That massive Dragon, the Red Death seemed suitable."

"It had barely any red on it," Hiccup frowned "The Grey Death would have made more sense."

Stoick just shrugged in response, Astrid emerged from the crowd with a small smirk on her face, Hiccup didn't like the look as she approached him, a punch hit his arm that was by no means light or playful, even if the smirk on her face was.

"That's for scaring me." Astrid scolded

"I definitely deserved that one." Hiccup nodded scratching the back of his head, she grabbed his collar and pulled him into a quick kiss, this time she didn't run away from him, she just smiled warmly at him.

"I think I liked the second half of that better." Hiccup said sheepishly, a small grin settling on his face.

Astrid chuckled, Gobber placed a red tail fin modeled similarly to Toothless last one, the saddle had been modified, the pedal that controlled the fin altered to his prosthetic could use it, the second Toothless caught sight of the fin he dived over the crowd, knocking anyone who didn't get out of the way to the ground.

Hiccup gave the dragon a slow scratch on the nose "You wanna test this out bud?" He asked enthusiastically.

The dragon warbled excitedly and Hiccup smiled knowingly as he tied the saddle and fin on, he jumped onto Toothless back, a wind picked up and pulled at his hair as the dragon pushed itself into the air slowly he hovered for a moment, before Astrid swooped over the top of him quickly.

"Aren't you being a bit slow for the _first_ dragon rider?" She taunted.

Hiccup let a lop-sided grin fall on his face as he leaned forward, Toothless taking off after the Nadder.

* * *

 **A/N: ANNNNNNNNNNNNNNND DONE! I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, finally moving into the series, if you guys anything you'd like to see, hit me with PM or a review and I'll see about including it, as I mentioned previously, a second Nightfury will be added to this fiction, that's slowly be explained as we move into the next chapters, I want to give a huge thanks to the people who have already followed, favorited, reviewed and even just read this story, you guys are awesome and I'm glad I can bring something people enjoy onto here!**

 **One again, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, thanks for reading and I will see you guys in the next one! Peace!**

 **P.S "Vonor" is a Norse for 'Warden' 'Watcher' or 'Caretaker' I thought it fit here.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hello! How is everybody? Hope your still good, I'm excited, I'm moving into the Rider's of Berk, I have a number of idea's as well as a few that were sparked off requests (Of which I've actually only received one.) But hey, I take that as I'm doing things right! Why else am I excited? I have an idea for a second HTTYD fiction, this next one will be a complete AU, I won't spoil anything for it but you can expect it to be up either later today or tomorrow! Without further ado, onto the chapter!**

* * *

Hiccup moved through the door of his home with a resounding stomp, his helmet was yanked unceremoniously off of his head and slammed into the wall, he leant on his new prosthetic and lurched forward quickly catching himself on the dining table and growling a string of incoherent curses at the new limb, he stun his stump of a left leg around and detached the prosthetic, it slammed into the wall and thudded against the floor next to his helmet, her drew his right knee up and placed his arms on it, resting his chin against his forearm as he glared at the wall.

The front door squeaked as it was opened slowly, Hiccup didn't really mean to glare at his father, he was just only glaring at the moment.

Stoick raised an eyebrow at his son, he took in the boys appearance, he noticed his sons hair matted to his forehead, a small puddle of water beginning to pool beneath the chair Hiccup sat on.

"Rough day of flying?" Stoick asked simply

"When the highlight of your day was the take off?" Hiccup groaned sarcastically, head thudding against the table.

"That bad?" Stoick asked, taking a seat opposite his son.

"No, it gets even better, I crashed, four times," Hiccup's head lifted slightly, his eyes locking onto his father's "Dad, when I rode Toothless the first time I didn't crash once, and I was riding him through a twisted maze of sea stacks at a break neck pace."

"Well," Stoick intertwined his fingers together "Son, you lost your leg, your body learned to balance on that almost fifteen years ago, it's gone through a radical change, you can't expect the same skill you had a week ago to instantly return to you."

"Yes, I'm very aware I'm now a cripple." Hiccup sounded sarcastically

"You aren't a cripple," Stoick paused, his sons unimpressed gaze causing him to shift slightly "Okay, you're a little bit of a cripple, but Gobber lost his leg and he does fine."

"Great," Hiccup half smiled in mock excitement "I'm sure I'll figure out how to fly Toothless again with sentiment!" He exclaimed bitterly.

Stoick sighed "Look, when your uncertain the only thing you can do is move forward," Stoick began "If you can't run, you walk-"

"If you can't wall you crawl and if you can't crawl you claw." Hiccup finished lifting his head slightly

Stoick paused with his mouth still hanging open "How do you know about that?"

"I may not have been entirely upfront when I said I survived on my own," Hiccup explained hastily "Vonor looked after me, for a long time actually."

Stoick paled slightly "Ma? Well, uh, that, uh, explains a lot." The large man nodded his head in slow understanding.

"She packed a wallop." Hiccup chuckled, rubbing at the back of his head.

"That she did," Stoick nodded "But well, the point is, if you're going to fly Toothless again you need to start from the beginning."

"Yeah, I don't have a right to complain until I've exhausted every method of moving forward," Hiccup recited, waving his finger around and rolling his eyes "Haaaaah, I hate it when she makes sense."

Stoick laughed as Hiccup hopped towards his prosthetic, retrieving his helmet and clipping the leg on, he limped upstairs and flopped onto his bed.

'Yeah, I can do this, I tamed a Nightfury and ended a three hundred year war,' He thought to himself as he silently pumped himself up 'Tomorrow will be better!'

* * *

It wasn't, the day after was worse, he crashed more, he came home more bruise than person and stalked upstairs, not even bothering to speak to his father and fell on his bed, attempting to will himself to sleep without eating, his stomach argued vehemently and it won, he lifted his head to move down stairs when his father walked up the stairs, placing a plate on the table beside Hiccup's bed, he gave the boy a knowing smirk and Hiccup shifted over to eat, staring down at the prosthetic angrily, he finished the plate of food and rolled over, forcing himself to sleep.

Hiccup didn't leave his room much after that, the days slowly melded together for the boy, sleep, read a little bit of one of the many books he had strewn about the floor in his room, sleep again.

Toothless nuzzled his arm affectionately on the fifth flightless day, the boy gave the dragon a weak smile as he rubbed its nose "Not today bud." He sighed, getting to his feet and walking over to his bed, he laid down, crossing his arms behind his head as he stared at the ceiling, he rolled over and retrieved a book from the floor and flicked through it idly, anything to take his mind of the fact that he was pretty much hiding in his room.

The dragon moved to the large stone slab it slept on, igniting a small area under it to sleep on it settled down, Toothless was aware of his humans predicament, having lost his tail fin, Toothless had almost given up hope of ever flying again, the dragon warbled in almost a low chuckle, the dragon certainly had never thought it would be saved by the same boy that shot him down, the human had even gone far enough to return Toothless's flight, even if he was forced to rely on the human, it wasn't so bad, the human had a knack for moving how he was supposed to atop the dragon.

Hiccup watched the Nightfury and sighed, as much as he would have loved to just hide in his room forever, he owed Toothless, the dragon had helped him through thick and thin, saved his life and helped him change everything on Berk.

Hiccup snapped the book closed and got to his feet, Toothless lifted his head and watched the human spread out his arms as he moved, leaning heavily on his prosthetic, Hiccup felt the appendage give out and his arms reached out to grab a hold of anything, finding the top of his dragon Hiccup smiled, gave Toothless a quick pat atop the head and tried again. He managed to stay balanced a moment longer before he fell again, again being caught by Toothless.

'When I can get from one side of the room to the other I'll take a break,' He thought as he gritted his teeth, it sent lightning spikes of pain threw his body every time he leaned on the prosthetic, but if he was ever going to fly Toothless again, he needed to get a sense for his new limb on the ground.

Hiccup took a slow step forward, he winced as pain spikes through his leg, Hiccup didn't move for a moment as he pushed forward, taking a single step forward, a small smile broke out on his face, the second step already easier than the first, he got to the railing of the his small loft and smirked, looking down at the front door before turning and walking back to his bed, he took a seat and sighed in slight relief when the pain in his knee subsided.

He heard the front door open and he frowned, his dad wasn't due back for at least another few hours, he frowned as whoever the entrant was ascended the stairs, a head of blond came into view, followed quickly by the rest of Astrid's body, she stopped on the edge of his room, her cheeks only slightly colored as she peered around, Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at her questioningly, flicking a stay bang out of his eyes, he frowned at his unruly hair, he hadn't realized how long it had gotten.

Astrid placed a hand on her hip and finally spoke "Alright, come on." He gestured with her hand out the door.

"What?" Hiccup asked in confusion.

Astrid rolled her eyes, walked into the room and grabbed the boy by the arm, he picked up the pace to avoid being forcibly dragged from the room as he followed after Astrid.

"No boyfriend of mine is going to hide out in his room for no reason." She informed him matter of factly.

"Oh, no reason huh?" Hiccup replied sarcastically.

"Yup, no reason," Astrid shot at him, the eventually reached the arena "You haven't flown Toothless in almost a week, you barely leave your house, all because you lost a leg, Gobber lost an arm too, he still works!"

Hiccup rolled his eyes in annoyance "Why does everyone always bring up Gobber, I get it, Gobber's not as useless as me with one leg!" He exclaimed bitterly.

Astrid did not look very pleased, she walked up to the boy quickly and gave him a swift punch in the arm, Hiccup winced "You are not useless just because you lost a leg, you saved _everybody_ even if you lost the leg doing it, you still have your life."

"I had my leg when I saved everybody," Hiccup countered "A limb I could trust completely, I can't even trust this thing to take half of my own body weight, let alone, fight or fly with it!"

"You survived in the forest almost practically alone for twelve years, you shot down a Nightfury and _trained_ it! You defeated the Red Death, you honestly expect me to just accept that a peg leg is going to stop the great Hiccup Haddock?!" Astrid shot at him, nailing each point with a sharp prod to the chest.

Hiccup let his token half grin fall on his face "Great Hiccup Haddock?" He questioned

"You seem pretty great to me," Astrid nodded resolutely "Even if you do kind of resemble a talking fishbone."

"Oh," Hiccup tilted his head to the side "You milady, you are playing a dangerous game." He warned, rocking on his feet slowly.

"Oh, really?" Astrid asked, eyebrow raising in intrigue.

"Trying to light a fire in all of this." Hiccup tilted his head, a smile on his face as he gestured to all of himself.

"Maybe I am," Astrid slowly moved around him, eyes taking on a glint that made his cheeks redden slightly as she circled him, pointedly rocking her hips as she moved, she ran her fingers over his collar bone lightly, barely ghosting against the bone as a smirk fell on her face "Maybe." She added again.

Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at the girl, her finger tracing lightly over his collar bone, he caught her wrist in his own and she paused, Hiccup pulled her arm towards himself, she thudded against his chest in surprise from the action, Hiccup lifted her chin with his index finger and peered down at her, she chuckled as she moved away from him.

"I might reward you," She almost purred "If of course, you can catch me."

Hiccup laughed quietly "Of course, milady." He bowed, flourishing his wrist as he widened his stance, Astrid lowered slightly and watched the boy carefully.

Hiccup glanced at his prosthetic for a moment, before pushing the uncertainty from his mind as he attempted to break into a run, it was more like an awkward half run, half limp as he was still unaccustomed to the leg, Astrid didn't move, or laugh, or even snicker at him as he stumbled more than once,.

Hiccup's eyes narrowed on the leg, determination set the green ablaze as he pushed to his feet, he grit his teeth as he lowered onto the prosthetic, allowing the mechanism to lock down, he lifted the weight of his leg, the spring got him going as he moved, swinging the peg leg out ever so slightly as he finally achieved a solid run, at least solid enough Astrid finally had to move, sweat began to bead on Hiccup's forehead, every step he took jarring the prosthetic and sending a lightning bolt through his leg, after a while the pain dulled, before it began to recede and finally it disappeared.

Hiccup slid to a stop Astrid copied the movement, sliding to a stop at the opposite side of the arena, Hiccup's smile was infectious as he hopped from foot to foot, the prosthetic giving him almost no trouble, Hiccup rolled his shoulders slowly, a few quiet pops resounded from his back as he lowered slightly, again he kicked off the prosthetic, finding the leg actually gave him a little bit more spring as he bolted after Astrid, the girl hadn't quite been expecting him to regain his former speed so quickly, she rolled to the side, the metal of his prosthetic grated against the ground as he pulled to a stop, his leg locking against the wall as he launched after the blonde, Hiccup may have had his speed back, but his agility had suffered, Astrid continued to dodge just out of his reach, Hiccup's smile only widened as the pair continued playing the slightly childish game for hours, every half hour or so, Hiccup's mind would just click, his freedom of movement progressively getting better.

* * *

The sun was setting when he felt like he had completely reacquired his original movement, his chest heaved and sweat poured from his face and hair as he sucked in air greedily, eyeing Astrid across from him.

She wasn't in a much better state, to make matters worse Hiccup had been progressively getting better and better as the game went on, his turns were tighter, he was able to roll after her and the prosthetic actually began helping him more than hindering as he learned to use the spring to quickly start and stop, if anything it was like he had gotten faster after losing the leg.

The wide smile on his face was mirrored on hers "Last stretch milady," Hiccup announced cockily, tilting his head, his grin turning into a smirk "I do hope your prepared."

Astrid laughed "You'll have to do better than that to catch me!" She challenged.

Hiccup chuckled as he widened his stance, darting after her, Astrid ran towards him, quickly spinning around out of his reach, Hiccup whirled around and launched after her, he was hot on her heels as she lowered into a sprint, Hiccup was only a step behind her, his eyes narrowed on her back slightly as his eyes took in every inch of her, the way her head bobbed slightly as she moved, the quick glances she shot at him, the way her feet tilted ever so slightly in the direction she was going to turn, his eyes widened as he found the small opening he could exploit, Astrid watched the boys facial expressions carefully, she hid the small smile on her face as she turned around.

The pair continued the game of chase for another minute, Hiccup watched Astrid's movement carefully, her feet tilted ever so slightly right and he made his move, stepping to the right a moment before she twisted and darted to the left, Hiccup smile widened as the spring in his prosthetic moved him, he angled enough to he shot forward, crashing into Astrid's side as the pair toppled over, Hiccup sliding along his back as he wrapped his arms around Astrid's body on reflex.

The pair laid collapsed on the ground for a moment before breaking into hysterical fits of laughter, Astrid pushed herself up on her hands, her forehead still resting on Hiccup's chest as she laughed along with the auburn haired boy, whose chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath in between small laughs.

Both of them were quite tired, having been running at almost top speed for the better part of the day, Astrid's head lifted slight and he shifted, locking her lips around Hiccups forcefully, the boy pushed his head forward, sitting up quickly as his hands slid down her sides and came to a stop on her waist, her arms wrapped around his neck as the pair stayed in the lip lock until oxygen demanded they separate, Astrid leaned against the boys shoulder, looking over his back at the setting sun, Hiccup spun himself around, his arm pulling her closer to him, a gentle smile on his face.

"Thanks Astrid." He gave her a light kiss atop her head

"What kind of girl can't pull her boyfriend out a little self induced pity?" She questioned sarcastically, tilting her head to plant a chaste kiss on his cheek "Your welcome." She added simply, smiling at him warmly.

The two stayed in that simple embrace for awhile, watching the descend as the moon slowly peaked the horizon, Astrid's head grew heavy and it lulled slightly down, Hiccup chuckled lightly to himself as he placed a hand on the girls shoulder, shaking her back into wakefulness.

She started and rubbed at her eyes "Sorry, I was just resting my eyes a little." She excused, getting to her feet and dusting herself off.

Hiccup followed suit, getting to his feet the pair left the arena in silent agreement it was time to head home, as the pair moved through the now almost completely silent town, Hiccup found his eyes being drawn to the girl beside him, she was walking close to him, he could jut out his elbow and he's hit her ribs, the boy let out a quiet chuckle as he lifted his hand.

His knuckled brushed the side of her hand, Astrid started slightly, lifting her hand away, it hovered a few inches away from his hand and Hiccup smirked as he closed the distance, intertwining his fingers with hers.

Astrid colored scarlet, she was thankful to the dark for hiding the blush on her cheeks at the moment, although Hiccup was still in much the same boat, he didn't understand how something so small could generate this kind of reaction, I mean, they had already kissed, you'd think this much would be easy.

Astrid's home was closer to the arena, they paused out the front as she reluctantly broke contact, she stepped away from him slowly, a small smile on her face "Well, uh, goodnight." She waved.

Hiccup caught her wrist and pulled her forward, she gave a quick start before he pressed a light kiss to her forehead "Goodnight, milady." His voice came out in a husky whisper, Astrid stuttered an intelligible response and darted into her home, closing the door behind her and leaning against it with a sigh.

Her eye cracked open when her mother let out a small chuckle, her mother's mouth opened but Astrid spoke first.

"Not a word." The blonde demanded sternly.

Her mother just shrugged and chuckled again.

* * *

Hiccup arrived at his home a little later, intentionally setting a slower pace, he was debating taking Toothless out on a nighttime flight, Hiccup pulled the door to his home open and was greeted by the excited Nightfury as the dragon darted outside, jumping around happily as id it knew Hiccup had gotten the use of his leg down.

Hiccup smirked, her darted inside and retrieved his helmet, slamming it over his head as he moved outside and leapt onto Toothless's back, the boy paused when he heard his dads voice.

"Hiccup!" His dad called in greeting, giving the boy a quick wave "It's good to see you up and about again."

Hiccup smirked, he had a feeling Stoick had something to do with Astrid coming to help him, not that he'd ever tell his father that he was aware of it.

"Yeah, Astrid came by today," Hiccup began casually, Stoick's ever so slight shift in his shoulders confirmed Hiccups suspicion "She really pulled me around."

Stoick chuckled "Well, maybe she was worried about you in her own way." The large man replied knowingly.

Hiccup nodded "We'll talk later dad, I have a feeling if this dragon doesn't get some time in the air he might eat me."

Toothless warbled in agreement and Stoick nodded, giving his son a wave as the Nightfury took to the sky.

* * *

Hiccup took a deep breath, with his trust in his leg restored he didn't doubt he could fly Toothless, but they decided to start slow anyway, Toothless could feel the boys caution as he moved, leaning lightly on the prosthetic as he turned into a slow bank right, Hiccup took a deep breath, finally feeling in control of the tail again, a small smirk played on his face.

"Let's pick it up a little." He gave Toothless a scratch on the back of the neck, the dragon warbled happily as Hiccup shifted slightly in the saddle, the pair dropped into a straight dive, picking up speed quickly, the twisted around the large sea stacks surrounding Berk, coiling over the and turning through small gaps, Hiccup's smile widened at the familiar rush, the moved around one last sea stack before ascending into the air and leveling out.

Toothless warbled happily, glad to be in the air again, a sound caught the dragons ears and his head perked up slightly as he peered around, Hiccup heard it too and frowned as he twisted in his saddle, looking for the source of the noise, he only noticed something was above them when a shadow fell on Toothless's back, he was glad it was a full moon that night as her jerked Toothless to the side, as whatever it was rifled passed them.

Toothless growled and Hiccup shifted in the saddle as they descended after the unknown dragon, the only thing Hiccup had caught was a flash of silver, he couldn't even guess the dragons size as they followed after it, it's dark color making it difficult to spot, the familiar whistle played through Hiccups mind as they chased the ghost of a dragon, the twisted through a tunnel and came out the other side, the dragon had completely disappeared, Hiccup rotated in the saddle trying to gain some kind of insight as to where it had gone, both Toothless and himself groaned in annoyance, before turning back to Berk, landing beside his house with a soft thud, Hiccup pulled his helmet of slowly as he entered the home, his confused frown still plastered on his face.

Stoick glanced at his son in curiosity "Still having trouble flying?"

Hiccup glanced up, placing his helmet on the table as he took a seat "No, now that I'm used to the leg it's as good as new." Hiccup replied

"Oh, well, good." Stoick nodded

"Yeah," Hiccup agreed with a smile "No, I ran into another dragon while I was out, well, more like it rocketed passed me and Toothless while we were out."

"Oh?" Stoick hummed curiously

"That's the thing," Hiccup started "I can't place it, it flew similar to Toothless, so all I can safely say is it's part of strike class, like Toothless."

"Well, you'll just have to go back out tomorrow, see if you can get a better look at this mystery dragon." Stoick concurred simply.

Hiccup nodded "Well, to be honest I wasn't going to asked for permission anyway."

Stoick laughed "Alright, to bed with you, I have meetings with the council tomorrow, there are important matters to discuss, I'll leave the new dragon to your discretion."

Hiccup nodded gratefully as he moved upstairs, Toothless jumped through the gap the built for him and settled on his stone, as Hiccup collapsed into his bed.

Toothless warbled in concern and Hiccup glanced at the dragon calmly "Don't worry bud, we'll find out what that dragon is, it's not the Red Death, it'll be fine."

Toothless gave the boy an unconvinced look and snorted, Hiccup waved the dragons concern off and rolled over, excited to begin the search for the new dragon, which he had simply named 'Ghost.'

* * *

Hiccup gave Toothless a light pat as they hovered over the area they had lost the mysterious dragon the night before, looking around, there wasn't any large land formation in the immediate vicinity, so he turned Toothless north, venturing further away from Berk, in hopes of finding another island.

When the direction came up empty, Hiccup pulled Toothless around, arcing back to the starting point towards the west, hopping the dragon would make its appearance known or he'd find an island a dragon might use as a nest. They arrived at the starting position and Hiccup sighed, turning Toothless east they set out again, at this point Hiccup was just hoping the dragon would try and attack them again.

Toothless let out an irritated roar as they continued the search, progressively widening the area as they went and repeating the same thing, no land masses, no new dragon.

Hiccup stretched out slightly, catching sight of something above them, his head lifted in curiosity, he knew he had a spotted something, he lifted a hand to block the sun in an attempt to better his view, his eyes widened as a large grey spot came into view, he jerked Toothless to the side and the dragon sped by them, Hiccup was already in pursuit, Toothless giving out a warning growl as they chased the grey dragon.

Hiccup could only see the dragon's back, but from his position it was very similar to Toothless, the only differences being it's color, and the dual row of dorsal like spines that ran along the top of its back, even the whistle it's wings made when it dived was the same.

Hiccup quickly realized that the dragons color allowed it to easily blend with the clouds, both at night and during the day, similar to how Toothless preferred to fight at night. being able to hide himself in the dark.

The grey dragon's head turned slightly to the side to peer at its pursuers, it was surprised to find the dragon was hot on its heels, even with the human on its back, it's eyes glanced at the dragons tail, it noticed the mechanical appendage and it growled, it's head pulling back to the front as it lowered towards the ocean, it was moving fast enough to part the water beneath it.

Hiccup flattened himself against the saddle as Toothless gave two powerful flaps of his wings, dropping into the same position as the grey dragon in front of him, generating the same effect as they followed after the dragon, an island appeared on the horizon, it was small, but large enough to easily hide some large caves and hold a fresh water supply, the grey dragon veered towards it, dropping into a darkened gap in between the rocks, Toothless and Hiccup came to a lurching halt, hovering above the hole, the pair ascended over the island.

"It can't hide in their forever bud." Hiccup assured Toothless, he was right, but the dragon was far from hiding, it position itself under the rider and the black dragon and watched them carefully, a small fire built in its throat as it loosed a quick flying bolt at them, the ball was similar to Toothless, only instead of the usual purple glow, it was a bright blue, Hiccup noticed and moved to the side, the bolt of fire flew passed him and Toothless let out a panicked shriek, Hiccup's head darted towards the tail as he realized the fire blast had melted through the connection rod in that split second, Hiccup's eyes widened as they plummeted towards the island, coming down with a loud crash in a small cove, Hiccup was thrown from the saddle as Toothless rolled to a stop, Hiccup pushed himself to his feet, ignoring his heads screams of protest as he ran over to Toothless, the Nightfury shifted back to his feet, green eyes glaring over Hiccup's shoulder as a guttural and threatening growl reverberated through his throat, Hiccup's hand snapped to his knife as he whirled around, meeting the bright blue eyes of the grey dragon, Hiccup blanked in surprise, the dragon in front of him looked exactly like Toothless.

It snarled at the other Nightfury angrily, Toothless's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Who are you and Why do you keep coming into _my_ territory!"

* * *

 **A/N: There it is, I hope I covered all the bases, even if I'm leaving you with a slightly evil cliffhanger, just going to give a little explanation, I have decided that the dragons can communicate with each other, although the people around them will still only hear them as, growls and other general dragon noises, the dragons themselves will be able to understand them, so when the dragons converse just keep that in mind.**

 **On that, What'd you think of Ghost? That's right, my OC Nightfury is going to be named Ghost, I think it fits her perfectly, I'm not entirely sure how this will effect everything in the overall story, but I have a few ideas, so I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I will see you guys next time! Peace!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:The response to the cliff hanger has gone pretty much how I expected, I'm glad you guys have enjoyed the story so far!**

* * *

The three figures tensed, none daring to move, Hiccup's hand rested on the hilt of his knife loosely as Toothless growled at the grey Nightfury, it's eyes were similar to Toothless only a brilliant blue, in contrasted well with its scales, he could do without the tooth filled snarl though.

"Who are you and why do you keep coming to _my_ territory." The dragon snarled at Toothless, said black dragon met her eyes flatly.

"Unsurprisingly, my friend here gained an interest in you when you attacked us." Toothless snarled back.

Hiccup remained quiet as the two dragons warbled and snarled at each other, he assumed they could make sense of the noises.

"A dragon, friends with a human?" The grey dragon scoffed "Maybe in fantasy."

Toothless let out a sharp growl "I did not stutter, this boy is my friend, threaten him and I will give you a fight you won't believe."

"Hah! What is a flightless Nightfury going to do, in your current state I could crush you easily," The grey fury spat "What's stopping me?"

"In your current state the boy could take you on his own," Toothless retorted flatly "What's stopping you is quite simple, have you been flying with any other Nightfury's recently?"

The grey dragon eyed the boy dangerously, Hiccup only narrowed his eyes in response and gripped the hilt of his knife "He is fearless, I'll give him that much."

"He has a better understanding on animals than most." Toothless visibly calmed, now reassured this new dragon had decided against attacking them for now.

Hiccup hadn't relaxed, the grey Nightfury had yet to stop eying him like he was lunch, Hiccup inched towards Toothless slightly as he watched the dragon in front of them.

The grey Nightfury tilted it's head "What is your name? You care to explain why you let a human ride you so comfortably?"

"Toothless," The black dragon answered simply "It may not be my original name, but I wear this name with pride, with this boys mind and my fire we undid the Red Death."

The grey Nightfury eyed Toothless in surprise, even she was aware of the Red Death, one of the most feared Alpha's of all time, ruthless and massive, that dragon had ruled it's nest through power and fear alone.

"You, A crippled Nightfury and an equally crippled boy?" She laughed, even if she could not sense the lie in the other dragon, she just couldn't believe it.

"This 'crippled' Nightfury had no issue chasing you," Toothless countered "You fled into the cave first remember."

"I used the natural advantages of my home, which I have been flying in since I was a hatchling!" The dragon shot back vehemently, defending her movement.

"Why don't you explain why you ran me to ground and give me your name, 'Grey one' is getting on my minds nerves." Toothless lifted his head simply

The grey dragon paused a moment "I didn't miss intentionally if that's what you were asking." There was a stagnant paused in the air for a few seconds before she spoke "The name most know me by is Ghost."

Toothless let out an amused warble, when hostility seemed to die down in the two dragons Hiccup finally relaxed, he stood straight and moved to the side of Toothless's saddle, he removed a small set of items, a hunk of metal and pulled the severed connecting rod from the saddle.

"What is the human doing now?" Ghost asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"Taking the necessary steps to get me back in the air, milady." Toothless replied, he had heard the boy call that blonde female that often enough.

Ghost eyed the black Nightfury cautiously while Hiccup moved to gather a stack of rocks, to build a make shift forge "You never told me how you ended up with a human rider."

"You were threatening myself and my friend," Toothless shot at her flatly "I see no reason so explain myself to you."

"True, but I am threatening you no longer, I am even allowing the human to move freely," She gestured at the boys back, Toothless gave her a look "You are in _my_ land, Toothless, you will do well to remember that."

Toothless let a rueful warble escape his throat "You seem to think you present a threat to either of us, it is, quite cute."

Ghost bristled, spines snapping up angrily as she growled at him.

"This is why I don't wish to tell you anything, you are easily angered and I can't trust you not to lead dragons back to us." Toothless ignored her growl completely, fixing her with a flat stare.

Hiccup finished build the stack of rocks, he placed the ingot of metal on top of them and gestured for Toothless to help him out, Ghost frowned then the Nightfury moved his attention away from her and placed his mouth near the rocks, fire building in his throat and projecting outwards, the metal heated and melted around the rock, falling into a small metal bucket Hiccup had, he moved to a lake a small distance and cooled it slightly, he grabbed his hammer and began working.

"You lend your fire to humans?" Ghost asked curiously, finally relaxing completely.

"I lend it to this human, when he needs it," Toothless replied "In this case, if I don't I won't be leaving this island."

"How long will he take? To make the repair?" Ghost asked, peering down at the boy who was gritting his teeth in annoyance when the metal became misshapen, he glared at the rocks before he started again.

"Usually he has a flat surface that won't hinder him," Toothless explained "It may take a few days."

Hiccup smirked up at the dragon "Sorry bud, I'll do what I can." Toothless just warbled down at him understandingly.

Ghost felt a pang of very distinctive jealously rush through her system, how _dare_ a human have a closer relationship to the only other Nightfury she had ever met, her teeth descended and she shook her head slightly, pulling herself out of her mind 'Why do I even care? They'll be gone in a few days.'

"Well, if you won't explain yourself to me I am going hunting." Ghost got up and stretched out her wings.

"In broad daylight?" Toothless asked inquisitively, Nightfury's were known to hunt at night, the word was in the name.

"Hah, you know so little about the females of your own kind, I can hunt whenever I wish." Ghost boasted

"Well, I can to, I just choose you hunt when it will be most effective." Toothless titled his head at the other dragon curiously.

Ghost just took off without retorting, she'd never admit he wasn't wrong, 'it isn't like just because he has really pretty black scales he could only hunt in the….PRETTY BLACK SCALES?!' She let out a groan and shook her head violently 'I'm just confused because it's the first time I've seen another Nightfury, around my age, his age doesn't matter!' She chided herself as she looked around, looking for anything she could take some anger out on 'And he has a human rider! Even though he won't tell me anything about it, what's with that? I'm not that threatening, besides I'm just on my own, talking to myself in the sky,' She noted as she looked around 'Maybe loneliness has finally driven me crazy and I am hallucination and Nightfury and his human rider, yes, that has to be it, I'll get something to eat and then wake up from this strange nightmare.'

Hiccup continued to relentlessly bend the steel, slowly manipulating the curve of the rocks to his advantage as he spun it, he fell into a methodical rhythm, turn the rod, hammer, turn, hammer, he didn't notice it was nighttime until he looked up to wipe his brow, his stomach growled angrily, demanding food.

Hiccup got to his feet, retrieving the pile of firewood he had already gathered he stacked it in front of Toothless, the dragon let out a quick puff of fire, igniting the wood, before looking back to the sky.

Hiccup gave his dragon a light pat on the nose "Don't worry bud, I'm sure she's fine."

'Worry?! I'm not worried about that, angry, demanding lizard, no matter how strikingly beautiful her eyes are…damn it.' Toothless thought to himself, Hiccup just received a warble that was somewhere between a whine and a growl.

Hiccup chuckled almost knowingly as he retrieved a small stick of bread from his pack and broke it, he tossed one of the three fish he had brought for Toothless and gave it to him, Toothless ate it quickly and Hiccup sat down, leaning his back against Toothless's chest, the dragon peered down at him.

"We found another Nightfury bud," Hiccup grinned rubbing at Toothless chin "I'm just going to call her Ghost, I think she likes you."

Toothless gave the boy a flat look, Hiccup just laughed "I'll work hard to finish the repairs tomorrow."

Toothless flicked the top of the boys head with his tongue as Hiccup settled back, Toothless pulled his wing over the boy's body and settled in.

* * *

It was a few hours after that, Toothless heard a pair of quick wing beats and a thud as something landed near them, Toothless knew who it was from scent alone.

"How fared the hunt?" He asked quietly

A groan and a loud thud was his answer.

Toothless lifted his head, in the dying light of the fire he could make out the other Nightfury, her face downturned in annoyance, whether it was at him or herself he didn't know.

Toothless snuffled into the pouch on his back, removing one of the other fish Hiccup had brought he tossed it to her, she lifted her brow in question.

"Eat, it won't do anyone any good if you are weak." Toothless snorted flatly.

"Do you really know so little about your own species?" Ghost hissed.

Toothless gave her a questioning look "I know only what I am sure of myself, I never met my parents, I was taught to fly by a Nadder in the nest, I have no understanding of my species habits or rituals."

Ghost watched him for a moment and sighed "If I accept food handed to me by a male, it's the same as me accepting him, I am accepting his charity, his protection, his warmth, it's the first and most important part of a Nightfury's mating ritual, whether they will accept the food or not, if I eat this, whether I like it or not I'm bound to you, we'd become m-mates." Ghost had really tried to keep her tone level, making sure to hide any excitement or worry she had, the stutter at the end irritated her, but it didn't matter.

"It's a cod." Toothless replied flatly as if not seeing the point.

Ghost rolled her eyes "It's what the cod symbolizes, don't mock your own species!"

"Our species is nearing extinction, perhaps it is best to change." Toothless countered boredly

"It's not like we can change instinct," Ghost retorted "You know what. fine, prepare to have me by your side for the rest of your life since you know so much better." Ghost snapped at him, flicking the fish into the air and swallowing it quickly.

Toothless watched the female curiously, she held a straight face for a moment before her pupils narrowed and her spines clapped together silently, her whole body felt like her fire was trying to escape from it, as soon as the feeling had come it died, leaving her in confusion, she peered around.

"Interesting." Toothless droned, head hitting the ground as he went to sleep.

Ghost stared at the other Nightfury for a moment, she had really dug her own grave at this point, she could already feel the need to be closer to the dragon in front of her, just because she had to prove a point, now she's stuck with this, even if his scales were pretty he was annoyance, sarcastic and he was crippled! He couldn't fly without a human, but now she would have to follow him back, which would mean interacting with humans, she mentally shuddered at the image of a large sweaty Viking on her back.

But something still struck her as odd, had it really had no effect on Toothless at all? She had felt like her scales were on fire, even if they were fire breathing lizards that kind of heat had been completely foreign to her, she shook her head and took off into the air, she moved over the ocean and dived, this time managing to snag a few fish in her maw, she didn't eat them, she had an idea as she returned to the small camp, she dropped the pile of fish on the ground, Toothless nose perked up and he lifted his head.

"Impressive catch for a thirty second hunt." He praised flatly, looking at the pile of around eight fish on the rocks.

Ghost couldn't deny the feeling of elation his praise brought her, her dragon face changed to about as close to a grin as it could have as she laid down, now it was simple, get Toothless to eat one of the fish she had caught, considering the human had only brought three, they wouldn't have a choice, 'I'd like to him stay straight faced after that!' She thought with a slight shake of her head.

* * *

The next morning she awoke to the sound of scratching, her eye cracked open, observing the human curiously, he would glance at her occasionally before looking back down at an odd smelling square, he seemed to be satisfied, he set the thing down and stoked the fire back to life, he removed the second piece of his biscuit and tossed it in his mouth, digging around in the bag for a moment before he stepped back.

"Toothless, you ate _all_ the fish in one night?" He complained in his nasally, tone, Ghost got to her feet, ignoring the human as she walked over to peer at what he was doing.

It was Toothless, no, the spines on the back, it was her, he had been scratching her into the strange thing, she sniffed a the thing carefully, it smelled like an old fire, charcoal, she tilted her head.

"He calls it drawing," Toothless called to her, she started jumping away from the brick "He draws many thing in that book of his."

She glanced down at it carefully "Like what?"

"Dragons, his mate, designs for my fin, even just random ideas, it's quite interesting to watch." Toothless explained with a yawn

Hiccup was still chastising the dragon for eating the food, when something hit the back of his foot, he turned around to see Ghost pushing half of the catch she made last night towards them, Toothless glanced at her "My apology, for being…curt, when we ran into each other for the first time, I am not used to seeing other Nightfury's or humans for that matter." She sounded sincere, Toothless glanced at Hiccup who just looked confused, Ghost sat on her hind legs calmly, Toothless shrugged pushing a fish to Hiccup as he snapped one of them up.

Hiccup had already moved away from his dragon with a shrug as he skewered the fish, when Toothless growled in discomfort, Hiccup glanced over at him, Toothless teeth were out and he looked like he was huffing as his entire body moved with his breaths, spines, very similar to the dorsal spikes on Ghost's back clicked along his back and then suddenly the burning sensation he was feeling was gone, he frowned, looking at his back, the spikes stared at him and he eyed them in surprise before clapping them together.

"Interesting, isn't it?" Ghost teased from across the clearing, and suddenly Toothless understood, he was now connected to the angry, demanding lizard with the beautiful eyes, he snorted distastefully and plopped down heavily.

"I've never seen someone shoot themselves in the foot for revenge before." Toothless responded

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ghost asked curiously, hopping towards him, Hiccup was eyeing the exchange carefully, Toothless seemed to half calmed down, the spikes along his back were new, but it might help them make tighter turns and they didn't seem to be causing him any other issues, especially after he began clapping them together excitedly.

Toothless wanted to laugh as he moved towards her "As far I know, I've never seen mated set of dragons where the female wasn't submissive." He growled, Ghost fell backwards, his head loomed over hers, his eyes narrowed to slits as the green glowed, her eyes widened in surprise when she realized she couldn't move her legs at all, her entire body had just gone stiff.

Toothless grinned tauntingly as he moved away.

"Y-You just took me by surprise!" Ghost defended angrily

"Keep telling yourself that milady." Toothless shot at her sarcastically.

Hiccup just watched the exchange in confusion.

* * *

Astrid stood on the edge of Berk, she was twirling a piece of grass on her finger, trying and failing to distract herself about worrying after Hiccup, Stoick had informed her that the boy had gone after a new dragon, but he hadn't returned, she couldn't explain how the whole thing felt off, what if had been knocked off Toothless? What if they were just floating in the ocean, slowly preparing to drown? What if this new dragon had been hostile?!

She shook her head violently, cutting off the train of thought, she had already resolved to search for him to the next day if he didn't return, she knew he'd be okay, she'd find him comfortably camped out of on a rock or beach somewhere, she knew it. She continued to reassure herself as she got to her feet and moved to where she kept Stormfly, the Nadder bobbed it's head excitedly and gave a squawk, Astrid smiled at the dragon as she opened a basket and tossed a fish into the air before petting Stomfly's beak, the dragon cooed quietly, meeting her eyes and seeming to understand her worry.

'If your that worried just go after him,' Stormfly attempted to will her human to understand, the girl just laughed and gave Stormfly a scratch under the chin 'Tch, humans.' The Nadder clicked to itself, Astrid took that as a sign of comfort and continued to scratch under the Nadder's neck, Stormfly squawked happily.

"Astrid!" The girl jumped a foot in the air at the sudden roar, whirling around to see Stoick jogging towards her worriedly, something she recognized in his hand.

Stoick slid to a stop in front of her "Mulch and Bucket pulled this up in a net towards the North-east."

Stoick handed the girl the helmet, she had already recognized it as Hiccup's, it even still had the scratch she had made over the eye, she traced it slowly, her worry taking on new levels of extreme.

"I'm sending you after him." Stoick spoke flatly

Astrid's head snapped up "Wha? I mean, Why me?"

"You know him better than most, you understand how he thinks, I just hope you aren't too late." Stoick clasped a hand over her a gentle smile on his face, his eyes gave away the urgency he was feeling.

"I'll find him, I promise." Astrid nodded resolutely.

Stoick nodded gratefully as Astrid pulled herself over her dragons back, Stormfly squawked and bobbed her head eagerly 'It's about time human, worrying here isn't going to protect your mate.' The dragon squawked again as they took off, immediately turning northeast, Astrid urged Stormfly to move faster as the wind pulled at her hair.

* * *

Hiccup continued to work on the control rod, he had finally gotten the technique down, so now it was just a matter of making it long enough, and thick enough, he continued working in silence, neither of the Nightfury's had made any noise since the incident where Toothless had stood over Ghost, Hiccup glanced up every so often, he made a mental note that the dragons were continually moving closer together.

* * *

 **A/N: Heh, What'd you think? Astrid's coming after him and she is not gonna be happy when she finds him, I debated having Toothless and Hiccup stuck on the island for longer and having Ghost progressively warm up to Toothless, but it sort of butted heads with my original plan for her personality, the result was the interaction you've seen! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, if you did, drop a follow, feel free to check out my other HTTYD story and I will see you guys next time, peace!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Nothing to say really, got me schedule pretty set for updates, alternating between this fiction and my other one, planning to get as many chapters out as I can while I have free time, they will probably settle into weekly/maybe two a week if I'm feeling good schedule by the beginning of February, I can't really predict the future, anyway hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Astrid's head continued to scan the area below her, eyes straining against the now dimming light, when she couldn't find anything her worry only grew, she traced the scratch on Hiccup's helmet and redoubled her efforts in searching for him.

She noticed a solitary ship in the water beneath her and frowned, flying low enough that she could see the crest on the sails, her eyes widened, the crimson colored spiked Viking helmet glared at her as she pulled back into the sky, for once she was glad to hear the loud rough shouts o the men on deck, it meant she didn't have to get too close.

"Did you hear that?" One asked gruffly, his black oily beard oozed over his belly as he looked around

"Hear what?" The other demanded in annoyance, he was considerably skinnier than his comrade, the helmet that covered his face seemingly much too big.

"Nothing," The first in replied "Why are we out here now, isn't Alvin going to get onto the island soon?"

Astrid lifted an eyebrow as she continued hovering over the ship silently.

"Course, apparently there's a savage boy that lives with the dragons there, Alvin's going to gut him like a pig." The skinnier one cackled loudly

"But, why are we out here, I want to help gut the boy too." The fat one complained.

"Because if Stoick or any other Berkian finds out we are using this as a staging area we'll be done in," The skinny man slapped the fat one over the head harshly "Just keep your eyes peeled for ships and shut up."

'They don't know we ride dragons now,' She thought positively as she moved Stormfly northeast and lowered towards the dragons back, urging the dragon to fly faster, it wasn't long until the island came into view 'Hiccup you had better be safe.'

* * *

Hiccup's hammer came down a little more forcefully than he had intended, snapping the almost complete connecting rod in two, the boy jumped to his feet and threw the hammer, the tool flew across the clearing and clattered against the stone loudly.

Ghost and Toothless stirred, lifting their heads ever so slightly to peer a the boy, Toothless warbled sympathetically and Hiccup sighed, falling onto his back in frustration "Sorry bud."

Toothless just looked down at his friend, tilting his head slightly before turning to speak to Ghost, he jumped to his feet when he realized how close he had gotten without thinking to the female.

Ghost peered at him curiously "What?" She demanded

Toothless actually felt a little bad, she was on edge around him, that didn't spell happy endings for Berk, he sighed "I want to apologize." He bowed his head.

Ghost raised an eyebrow, it was a look Toothless had seen the blonde human use oh so many times, skeptical and taunting at the same time, he growled in his throat.

"I do not wish for this," Toothless continued "But, unfortunately, we are bound even if we don't want to be, so we might as well be…nicer, to each other."

"I see no reason to disagree with you," Ghost inclined her head, she was partly to blame, having charged into the bond in anger, she now had to deal with a consequences, she couldn't even pretend to be repulsed at the idea of being with Toothless for the rest of her life, not that she'd ever tell him that "What did you have in mi-" She cuts off, ears perking slightly

Toothless was about to ask what's wrong when he picks up on it, the sound of men moving in the tree's, a great distance from them, but still on the island, there was no way it was someone from Berk, there be dragons if there were.

Hiccup could feel the tense atmosphere surrounding his dragon as he got to his feet, the sun was beginning to fall towards the Horizon, slowly dying the ground orange as he got to his feet.

"Friends of yours?" Ghost asked, although, judging from Toothless expression, she already knew the answer.

Toothless just shook his head in response, Hiccup could have sworn he saw a small black dot in the sky, he moved towards it slightly, as it grew larger he realized it was a dragon, a Nadder, he tilted his head, the color blue coming into his sight and his eyes widened, it was Stormfly, which meant Astrid.

"She's gotten tired of waiting for me to rescue myself and has come to kill me," He announced sarcastically, she catches sight of them, Stormfly swoops and Astrid holds his helmet over her head, he can see the relieved grin on her face from the ground, Toothless lets out a warning growl and Hiccup frowns, he hears a shout, his helmet falls into the clearing and his head snaps up in time to a see a net descending around Astrid and Stormfly, the dragon's panicked attempt at evasion toppling Astrid from the saddle, Hiccup felt his stomach jump to his throat.

"She's a friend," Toothless snapped at Ghost urgently, the grey Nightfury slammed passed him with a powerful wing beat, even with her speed, she only managed to have the human clip her wing slightly, Astrid bounces of a grey dragon that looks an awful lot like Toothless as she falls below the tree line, air was the first thing that gets knocked out of her lungs, she could feel the sickening crunch of her ribs as she fell towards the ground, arm flying out uselessly trying to halt the fall, she hits the stone ground with a loud thud, barely holding onto consciousness as she claws her way to where Stormfly had been downed by the net, Astrid's shoulder screams at her, commanding her to cease the movement, she shoves it down, reaching Stormfly, now completely constricted by the massive net, Astrid fumbles for her dagger, when she can't find it a small grimace comes to her face, she leans against Stormfly's stomach, Hiccup had seen her, he'd come for her soon.

* * *

Hiccup gritted his teeth, someone had fired a net at Astrid, he scooped his helmet from the ground with his hand as he broke into a dead sprint, snapping tree branches that dared try and stop him, his footfalls sounded heavy in his ears, the chink of his prosthetic only bringing memories of Astrid to his mind as he snarled into his run.

* * *

Astrid heard someone snap through the trees and she blinked, eyes groggy from the screaming of her ribs and shoulder, she could barely make out who had entered the small clearing of trees Stormfly had carved out in her crash.

"Oh, there's a girl with a dragon!" One exclaimed, Astrid's eyes widened in horror as she realized exactly who had shot her down, The Outcasts, she pushed herself back against the dragon, attempting to fight her way to her feet, he side screamed and she fell back down in a heap.

"She seems injured," A man chuckled "She's quite an eyeful too."

Someone's greasy hand ran along her cheek, she couldn't even manage a glare, she just groaned pitifully, her belly wrenching in seething hatred, both at her own weakness and at the man who _dared_ touch her.

"Oh, she's got a nice fiery look on her eye," Another voice, how many were there now, they all drawled so similar they melded together and she couldn't tell "These ones are always the most fun to _break_."

She shudders violently, slinking as far in on her safe as she can to get away from the people in front of her when someone else snaps through the trees, her eyes widened when Hiccup's mask enters her vision, her eyes suddenly clearing as the boy's eyes burned an entirely new dark of green, the unbridled fury that reflected from his eyes caused a chill to run down her spine, the scratch over the eye of his helmet looked like a battle scar against his shadowed face, the only part of his eye visible being his burning green, the man that had touched her was whimpering in pain, it took Astrid a moment to realize Hiccup had just kicked him across the clearing and the boy looked far from done with any of the men in front of him.

A loud clap rang over the incredibly silence of the clearing, a large black bearded man lumbered forward, his helmet seeming just a little too small for his head, his spiked shoulder guards and black studded arm guards, the sword on his hip was wickedly curved and poorly constructed, mimicking the rest of the Outcasts weapons, Hiccup didn't blink just glared angrily at the group.

"That was a mighty fine blow if I've ever seen one," The man nodded his head, a reverberating chuckle escaping his throat, he grabbed his soldier by the scruff of the neck and dragged him into the group, tossing him to his feet "Don't need to explain to me why your protecting such a beautiful shiela." He laughs, rubbing his hands together, eyes flicking over Astrid's injured form, a dark glint in his eye as he licked his lips slowly.

Disgusted wouldn't begin to describe Hiccup's reaction, fury, rage, blinding hatred tore at his mind, they had hurt Astrid, they had hurt _his_ Astrid, his instincts roared against the flimsy cage of his mind, they won, cracking free of the small iron bars, his eyes narrowed as his gloved hands spread out, his knuckles slammed together, the clap sounded thunderous against the silence that surrounded them.

"Who are you?" Hiccup demanded, his tone flat, steely cold and distant.

Astrid wondered if that was even the same boy she had met, he certainly felt completely different, before it occurred to her, _her_ Hiccup was not staring down the men in front of her, the Dragonboy of Berk was staring down the men in front of her, the terrifyingly powerful rumor that had floated around the island, turning away entire ships of heavily defended merchants.

"Most people round ere call me Alvin the Treacherous!" The man boasted, hitting his chest with his fist.

Astrid wanted to throw up, her ribs were still screaming, she assumed some of them were broken, she couldn't tell what was wrong with her shoulder, she just knew it all hurt and she wanted to scream in agony.

Hiccup's head tilted ever so slightly to the side, seeing Astrid barely containing the pain she was in, his eyes darkened, turning a single eye towards Alvin, the man's laughter died in his throat, the boy in front of him looked just about ready to eat him alive.

Hiccup's anger peaked, his blade in his hand as he shot forward, Alvin quickly back pedaled as his men moved in front of him, brandishing weapons of all kinds, Astrid watched in terror as Hiccup didn't slow, his body was low enough he could drag the tip of his sword on the ground, sparks flew from the tip as he shifted, blade slamming against an Outcast shield with a thundering crack, the shield managed to reflect the blow, Hiccup's knife flipped in the air as he let it go, his eyes darting to the three men in front of him, spears poised to impale him, his eyes shot between the three weapons and everything came to a lurching halt around him, as if the entire world had slowed down as he crouched low and sprung into the air, he caught the blade and turned in the air bringing the knife down quickly, the men looked up in surprise as he fell passed them, Hiccup wiped the blade along his forearm before snapping the blade back into its sheath, Astrid's eyes widened as blood spattered from the throats of the three outcasts, Hiccup's face was darkened as the crimson splotched against his side, the other Outcasts backed away from him in panic.

Astrid felt sick, she had seen the glow in his eyes the moment before those throats exploded, he had been smiling, his mouth likely turned into some furious snarl that was reflected in his eyes, the Outcasts charged him, swords and spears and axes swinging at him, they might as well have been swinging at air, Hiccup deftly danced around each strike, although she never saw him reach for his knife, his elbow slammed into the gut of an Outcast as he over extended, Hiccup pivoted around the man's body, catching the sword as it fell and driving it backwards, the sound of steel slicing flesh rang around the clearing.

Hiccup didn't even flinch as he moved out of the way of an axe, he folded slightly to the side, seemingly like he was tightening a screw before his palm shot forward, slamming into the shield he had weakened earlier, it cracked and splintered against him and he growled darkly, turning around a spear and drawing his weapon again as he slashed it across each opponent, six pools of blood continued to grow at his feet, he stepped over the corpses, locking eyes with Alvin as the man's men abandoned their weapons, Alvin grinned widely "You'd make a nice addition to the Outcasts, savagery befits you." Hiccup paused and for a terrifying moment, Astrid though he was going to agree and just leave her there, before his hand tightens on his blade.

His voice was still steely and cold, he spoke in a flat dark growl "No it's just us two left."

There was a stagnant pause as Hiccup draws his knife "I'll rip you apart!" Alvin cackled as he drew his sword and met the boys rush.

"Good," Alvin laughed a cut opening on his cheek "It's been too long since I received an actual _challenge_."

Hiccup dropped down under Alvin's slash, he leg shot up and slammed into the larger mans chin, Astrid's eyes widened, even though it wasn't _her_ Hiccup, his simple deadly grace was breathtaking, it was like he was floating half an inch of the earth as he twisted around each blow, expertly coiling around to land another shallow strike, but she'd never felt to conflicted, she could leave him and he would could one of the biggest enemies of Berk or she could try to stop him, bring _her_ Hiccup back, the Hiccup that was so gentle he wouldn't kill an insect.

When Alvin caught Hiccup's side with the edge of his blade and she saw Hiccup's blood splat against the ground, her mouth made her decision before he had ever could "Hiccup!" She practically shrieked, the boy faltered in his advance leaping backwards and sliding next to her, the worry in his eyes so clear her chest clenched.

Alvin seemed to think Hiccup was no longer a threat as he moved forward, Hiccup's glare stops him short, Alvin falters only a moment, before turning around and scurrying off, snapping through the trees as he moved towards his men.

Hiccup cups Astrid's cheek in his hand, his fingers brushing over her lightly, tentatively, like if he touched her properly she'd break, his eyes darted all over her form, taking in her injuries, spots of dried blood on her tunic, her shoulder was swelling and purple, the appendage looked ghastly.

"I'm sorry," He managed to choke out "I couldn't, when I saw you-like this-I just-everything just…snapped."

Astrid pulled the helmet off, she ran her thumb over his cheek, smiling gently "It's okay." She whispered, barely loud enough for him to hear, he leaned forward and buried his face in the crook of her good shoulder.

"I'm just so glad you're alive." His shoulders racked against her as he sobbed "If you had-I don't know what I'd do."

She does her best to run her hand over his head comfortingly, but the pain is taking its toll and she can sick black encroaching at the edge of her vision, he leans back, he was aware she was passing out, he gives her a weak smile, strangely enough it works to comfort her as she falls back.

Hiccup didn't waste time, he scrambled away from her, cutting Stormfly free of the net, the dragon bounced to its feet and nuzzled it's master worryingly, Hiccup forced the dragon to move away from Astrid as he racked his brain for a way to get her back to the cove, he needed water to clean her wounds, something to make a sling out of, he ran his hand gently over her shoulder, glad to find out it was only dislocated, not broken, meaning he could easily get it back into place, Vonor and medical books had taught him how, he also had a pretty solid understanding of herbs.

A loud thud echoed behind him, he turned to see Ghost landing in the clearing, he gathered Astrid in his arms as gingerly as he could, taking utmost care to avoid her injured side and arm, Ghost only glared at him for half a second before she lowered, allowing the pair to climb on her back.

At least it wasn't a large sweaty Viking riding her, just a worried human and his female mate, she landed as lightly as she could, Hiccup winced when the impact caused Astrid to groan, Toothless stomped his way over worriedly and Ghost quickly began explaining the situation, Toothless looks at his friends back in worry and says nothing.

Hiccup lays Astrid down and uses a small smooth rock to prop her head up, grabbing the bucket he used for melting metal he ran to the lake and cleaned it, leaving it about half full with water as he darted into the trees, he thanked the gods that the herbs on this island were the same as Berk, grabbing leaves that helped reduce pain and another one he could crush in a poultice that works fairly well at reducing swelling, he dropped the herbs in a pile beside the bucket and rushes over to Toothless saddle, drawing a section of leather out he cut it away and setting it down, he gestured for Toothless to move over to him, the dragon obliged, Hiccup pointed at the bucket and Toothless began breathing a steady stream of fire, heating the water, Hiccup pulled another strip of leather from the saddle and dropping it in the water, now effectively boiling, he repeated the process, hoping that the boiling water would effectively sanitize the bandages.

His hands hovered over Astrid's stomach a moment, taking off her shirt in these circumstances for the first time made him feel sick to the stomach, he removed the fabric slowly, thankful that his eyes only linger on her chest binding for half a second, retrieving the strips of bandages he tips the water out and places the herbs in the bowl, drawing his knife he holds the flat of the blade and uses the hilt as a grinder, slowly turning the leaves into a thick greasy stew, he scoops a bit into his hands and rubs it over Astrid's ribs as gently as he can, she winces and groans, but otherwise remains still, he wraps the ribs with the still slightly damp set of rags and knots them, they were tight enough they didn't slip and loose enough it wasn't hurting her, he moved back to the bowl, crushing the last of the herbs he had gathered before grabbing her arm slowly, he placed a hand against her shoulder to brace it before he forced it up, it fell into the socket with a sickening crunch and he winced when Astrid shot up, a loud, shrieking scream of pain ripping from her lungs. He caught her as she fell back, letting her land lightly, her ribs already felt better thanks to Hiccup as he tied the arm in a sling, she peered up at him, azure eyes half lidded as she breathed heavily, her good arm grabbed the front of his armor and pulled him down, slamming her lips against his, the last thing she remembered before she passed out again was his emerald eyes widening in surprise.

* * *

 **A/N: Someone asked what Hiccup would be like if he lost control over his instincts completely, here you go! Honestly, there were about a hundred different versions of this chapter in my head, this is the one I chose, I think overall it holds best for the action I plan to put in the story and since Hiccup was acting just a little wimpy in the last couple of chapters I wanted to reaffirm his badassery, this seemed like a rally solid way to do it, as usual I hope you enjoyed, drop a follow if you did feel free to check out my other HTTYD fiction and I will see you guys, in the next one, peace!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Yo, haven't updated in a whole two days you guys must think I died! XD, nah, just started to slow due to a number of things happening, I'm gonna smooth out a few more details on a third HTTYD fiction as well and get that up either later today early tomorrow, mostly cause I like the idea I had and really want to see what other people think! Well, I'm sure you've had enough of me prattling on, to the chapter!**

* * *

Hiccup rubbed at his eyes, he hadn't slept he was too worried Alvin would come back and try to finish them off, but while he was up all night he had worked out a solution to getting them off the island, provided Ghost would let him ride her, Astrid's grip tightened on his hand, he had intertwined his fingers with hers at some point during the night, he couldn't be sure when, but the warmth did offer him some measure of comfort.

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, 'Okay, fly back to Berk, fix connecting rod, come back, repair Toothless tail, leave this damned island on the horizon.'

At first he thought he would be able to get away with flying back on Stormfly, but the dragging need to bob it's head with it flew would jostle Astrid more than he wanted to risk, he could fly Ghost low and smooth, causing Astrid much less discomfort and hopefully not breaking anything.

Toothless stirred, at this point he had become desensitized to the female Nightfury under his left wing in the morning, his face reflected about as close to a love struck grin a dragon could replicate, he nuzzled the back of her head affectionately, still not entirely thinking about what he was doing and just giving over to his whims.

Hiccup chortled when the black dragon realized what it was doing and it's head snapped up as Ghost awoke, Hiccup untangled himself from Astrid's hand to approach the two Nightfury's, Toothless eyed him curiously, Ghost mirrored the expression identically.

"Uh, H-Hi," Hiccup took a deep breath "Ghost, I need your help."

Ghost looked at Toothless for a moment then looked at Astrid, the blonde was pretty, for a human, the Nightfury felt just the tiniest miniscule, need to help the boy in front of her and subsequently his mate as she rose to her feet.

Hiccup extended his hand towards the grey Nightfury slowly, Ghost hesitated only a moment until she pressed her head against his hand, she snorted and he scratched under her neck in appreciation.

"I didn't expect you to be so easy to get along with," Toothless chuckled "Where's the pointless resistance?"

"Quiet," Ghost snapped "I am going to save your friend, his mate and by extension you, show some gratitude."

"Thank you." Toothless bowed his head respectfully "For today and for helping the girl yesterday even though you had no requirement to, it means a lot."

Ghost smirked pride-fully "I'm not nearly as horrible as you think I am."

Toothless warbled calmly "I never said you were horrible." He defended

Ghost gave him a look.

"What?" Toothless questioned "I don't even think it."

Ghost's expression didn't change and Toothless slumped to the ground.

"Do you want something specific? I'm not good with _hints_." His face screwed up as he said the word hints, like females expected him to know what they were thinking by subtle looks and actions, what did they think males were? Magic?

"If you don't find me horrible, what do you think of me?" Ghost asked

Toothless lifted an eyebrow and Ghost waited with a bated breath "I think your eyes and scales are pretty," Toothless confessed "I think you care more than you let on and I would be proud to have a Nightfury like yourself as my mate."

Ghost looked taken aback "T-That was…quite…blunt."

"Did you want me to mince words?" Toothless asked

"No," Ghost made a movement that could be considered a shrug "Colorful words are a human custom, I think you would make a fine mate as well."

Toothless chuckled "Glad to see we are in agreement."

Hiccup carefully moved Astrid atop Ghost, the grey Nightfury even lowered to the ground to make it easier, he climbed on her back and cradled Astrid the best he could to his chest "I'll be back soon bud, I promise."

Toothless warbled affectionately and turned to Ghost "I shall await milady's return." He bowed his head and Ghost scoffed.

"Right after I said I care nothing for colorful words." She turned her head away.

"I know, that's why I started using it." Toothless teased light heartedly as the Nightfury took off.

Stormfly padded over the clearing and gave him a simple look.

"What?"

"Of all the stupid things you have done, accidentally mating, is definitely on top of the list." Stormfly taunted him.

Toothless merely grumbled in response "How was I supposed to know eating a fish would tie us irreversibly together, it's stupid."

"Oh, maybe when she told you?" Stormfly laughed, finding the Nightfury's situation comical.

"In hindsight I am aware of that now aren't I?" Toothless snapped, Ghost leaving him on an island already making him aggravated "Ugh, Why does this make me feel so weak."

Stormfly gave him a look "It's supposed to, you rely on someone now, even if you don't like each other, your bodies don't care."

Toothless just grumbled something intelligible and turned away from the Nadder who took off to find food.

* * *

Ghost must have been trying to set a record, Stoick darted through the crowd as his son got off the new Nightfury, Ghost ignored the pointed whispers and stares as best she could, only growling when someone she didn't know approached her.

"Hiccup!" Stoick exclaimed in relief.

"Hi dad," Hiccup waved as he moved Astrid off of Ghosts back, he had been correct the Nightfury sharpest movements were taking off and landing "I need you to take Astrid to Gothi, I've got to repair this and get back to Toothless."

"But-" Hiccup lifted his hand and his father paused.

"I'll explained everything after I bring Toothless and Stormfly back, you can even ground me for interrupting you." Hiccup offered sarcastically.

"You will be grounded, indefinitely," Stoick countered bluntly " _After_ you get the dragon, we have a lot to discuss."

Hiccup nodded as Stoick gathered Astrid and began towards Gothi's, Hiccup gestured for Ghost to follow him as he darted to the forge, a connecting rod was simple, Hiccup moved with a simple purpose as he hammered the metal into the correct shape.

"You look like you're in good shape, even though Astrid got beaten up." Snotlout jeered from the door.

"She was shot down and I was miles away Snotlout," Hiccup snapped at the boy flatly, giving him a very angry warning glare, Ghost was surprised by the sheer ferocity the lanky human could put in his glare alone, it made sense now why Toothless had worried so little about him "Alvin made an appearance, I killed a few of his men and drove him off."

"You…killed people?" Snotlout asked in surprise

"Yes, and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again if they threatened Astrid or anyone else on Berk, this place is my home and I'll protect it." Hiccup finished flatly as he lifted the rod, inspecting it one last time before cooling it.

"Alright girl, let's get back to Toothless, I'm sure you want to see him too." Hiccup cooed softly, ferocity absent from his tone as he moved outside and jumped atop Ghost's back.

"I'll be back soon." He informed Snotlout simply as he took off, Ghost needed very little guidance as she turned to the island and dropped into a quick flight.

* * *

A twig snapped, Toothless eyes snapped open, the pupils narrowed threateningly as he lifted his head, the sun was beginning to dip again, the Nightfury's eyes drifted between the tree's, he lifted his head and smelled a the air, surprised to find nothing, Toothless rose on all fours and growled, every spine on his body bristled as he looked around.

A net flew from the shadow of the tree and Toothless blasted it, the flimsy rope snapped and fell around his feet uselessly as a Group of Outcasts rushed him, Toothless whipped around, tail slamming a few of the men out of the way as his maw glowed, he heard the familiar whistle and the area in front of him exploded as Ghost landed with a thud, Hiccup dismounted and charged forward, jumping into the air to drop kick an Outcast who was nearing Toothless.

"So, we were just a little too slow." Alvin cackled as he emerged from the tree's, Hiccup glared at the man angrily, his helmet muffling his voice slightly.

"You must really have a death wish," Hiccup lifted his hands to his sides, hands outstretched as the clearing darkened completely, a dark purple glow appeared by his left hand a bright blue mimicked the action on the right as Toothless and Ghost's mouths glowed with the flame they were readying, Hiccup's body was painted with the glows of both lights, his eyes glared as his fists clenched, the Nightfury's blasted fire forward, the tree's to Alvin's sides exploded, fire bellowing into the air as Hiccup darted forward, the massive Viking smirked confidentially, as an arrow whistled passed him, Hiccup slid to an abrupt stop his blade flicked to his hand, Hiccup spun it around his fingers, knocking arrows to the side as he rolled to the side and popped to his feet.

"Light the whole dam forest on fire!" Hiccup shouted, Toothless was more than happy to comply, Ghost joined him, fire shot forwards and a continued stream, the archers dived out of the way of the dual waves of purple and blue as Hiccup darted to Toothless, slamming the connecting rod into place and leaping atop the dragons back, his foot locked into place and he glared at Alvin, the firelight dancing on his mask giving his eyes a dark glow.

"If you challenge Berk, I'll make sure you don't live to see your next birthday." Hiccup growled darkly as Ghost and Toothless pulled off the ground, the tree's toppled around Alvin as he retreated into the forest, his men had long since abandoned the front.

Hiccup gave Toothless's neck an affectionate pat "Good job bud."

Ghost warbled from beside them "Yes Ghost, you helped too." Hiccup acknowledged as if he understood the dragons sounds.

"So, what do you plan to do about a rider?" Toothless asked curiously.

"I refuse to be ridden by one of the large heavy ones, no fat ones either," Ghost grumbled, she had seen more than her fair share of large Vikings "I like the blonde female, and your rider, maybe I'll steal him away from you." She joked as they flew.

"He wouldn't choose you over me anyway," Toothless retorted "He gets enough attitude from his own mate."

"I don't have an attitude." Ghost shot at him, Toothless gave her a look.

Ghost deflated slightly "I might have, a little bit of an attitude, you know what this is why I hate you!"

"I thought I'd be an acceptable mate?" Toothless taunted, referring to their earlier conversation.

"I like you a little, but I still hate you a whole lot!" Ghost shot at him flatly.

"I see." Toothless chuckled

"Would you fly silently!?" Ghost snapped, Toothless just let out a draconic sigh as he turned in a slow arc towards Berk.

"As milady commands." He let out quietly.

Stormfly just rolled her eyes as she flew behind the two Nightfury's silently.

Ghost shot him a look, but neither spoke again as they set down on Berk, Hiccup dismounted and dropped on his bed heavily, dropping his helmet he pushed himself back to his feet as he forced the allure of sleep from his mind, Toothless moved back outside to be nearer to Ghost, who only glared at him for a few moments before stepping under his outstretched wing and snuggling next to him, both aware they'd end up in that position anyway.

* * *

Hiccup slammed through Gothi's front door, the old lady seemed completely unfazed by the sudden noise, sitting a large pot calmly, she glanced up at the boy knowingly and gestured upstairs, Hiccup nodded gratefully as he ran upstairs, Astrid was still peacefully wrapped in blankets, the swelling in her shoulder almost completely down, leaving only a dark purple bruise marring her flawless pale skin, Hiccup grimaced as she dragged a chair around and plopped down in front of her.

A blue eye cracked open and he lifted an eyebrow at it "Did you get Toothless back?"

Hiccup nodded, a small smile on his face.

"What about that other dragon? The grey one?" She asked, excitement causing her to sit up a little too quickly, she winced when her ribs groaned at her, she played it off as best she could as she pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear, her braid had been abandoned, her long hair flowed over her back, Hiccup struggled to contain the urge to run his fingers through it, he didn't really get the opportunity when the braid was done.

"Ghost," Hiccup informed "She's a female Nightfury Astrid, I think Toothless and her already mated somehow, but she's a lot like you, stubborn and prideful."

Astrid's punch bounced of his shoulder pad and she winced, she waved her hand "Ow."

Hiccup chuckled "I'll let you get back to sleep." He got to his feet and moved to leave.

"Stay." Hiccup froze, Astrid's cheeks colored scarlet as soon as the word left her mouth, the painkillers Gothi had given her suppressing her usual filter "I-It's cold," She attempted to explained, rubbing at her arms nervously "And I don't want you walking home this late."

Hiccup smiled gently as he moved back to the seat, his hand found hers and he gave it a reassuring squeeze as he tilted his head "Alright, since you want me here so bad."

Astrid shot him a half-hearted glare and pulled him forward, his knee struck the edge of the bed and he raised an eyebrow, Astrid grabbed his collar with her working arm and hoisted him onto the bed, Hiccup smirked up at her, his hand rested on her cheek before the warm appendage left her cheek and Hiccup sat up, pulling the armor over his head he set it down beside the bed and laid down, his hand rested on her cheek as he smiled at her.

She nuzzled against his hand tiredly, her own folding over it gently as she got comfortable, her head resting on his chest, one of his arms folded around her carefully, avoiding all her injuries, the other trailed through her hair slowly, the comforting feeling of his fingers on her hair and the rhythmic thump of his heart put her to sleep quickly, light snores escaped her form as he pressed a light kiss to her head.

Hiccup stared at the roof for a few more minutes, before the day's events caught up with him, he was already running on an all-nighter, sleep only eluded him for a few seconds as he drifted off.

* * *

 **A/N: Bit of a shorter chapter, but it's kind of like a primer, a lot of stuff is going to happen relatively quickly, but for now I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you did drop and a follow and feel free to check out my other stories and I will see you guys in the next one, peace!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: As we begin to move into the war with the Outcasts, I am going to give a simple warning, prepare for it to be much less tame (If that wasn't obvious from Hiccup already killing people.) There will be blood, with that enjoy!**

* * *

"Should we wake them up?" Astrid's mother whispered to Stoick quietly, she had come to check on her daughter and bring her something to eat, upon arrival at Gothi's hut, she had found her daughter comfortably snuggling against the Haddock boys chest.

Stoick seemed to consider it a moment "I think they both deserve their rest." He inclined his head as the pair moved.

"Yes, rest would be great," Hiccup sighed, his chin rested on Astrid's head and his eyes blinked rapidly as he attempted to chase away lingering tiredness "I was awake all night yesterday."

"And I'm still sore." Astrid complain, neither teen had moved, both just fixed disapproving looks on their parents surprisingly both adults actually felt bad, as if they'd be caught doing something they weren't supposed to be doing.

"Well since your awake," Stoick recovered first shaking himself slightly as he clapped his hands together "I'm going to need a report."

Hiccup nodded, he slid backwards his upper body resting against the back wall, Astrid followed along silently using his chest as a ramp to sit at a recline, Hiccup's arms never left Astrid as he moved and Astrid seemed to be daring her mother to make a comment about it.

"I went out in search of the mystery dragon," Hiccup recounted calmly "We found it Toothless and I, in the chase the dragon mistook us for enemies and fired at us, she missed but severed the connecting rod for Toothless's tail that was why I couldn't return." Hiccup recapped quickly.

"Astrid found me later on the second day," He continued after a slight paused "On her way to me Stormfly was caught in a net and when the Nadder bucked Astrid was thrown from the saddle, the mystery dragon, a female Nightfury I've named Ghost, didn't catch her in time but did lessen the impact of the fall resulting in this," Hiccup gestured to Astrid "The net was fired by the Outcast tribe, Alvin the Treacherous was present, they were using the island as a closer staging area to attack Berk, I engaged them when I arrived at Astrid's crash, Alvin got away, when I went back for Toothless, the three of us fought again, their trap was poorly set up and no physical harm befell me or the dragons, but we did burn the forest down."

Stoick took the information calmly "Well, if they were using the island for its lumber that's off the table, what do you think? Will they attack anyway?"

"I'm not sure, Alvin is not known for his intelligence so there is a possibility he plans to mobilize and attack in force before we can correctly prepare." Hiccup frowned as he spoke.

"I think a defensive stance would be wise, for now anyway," He concluded "We don't need to go looking for a fight that may not come, I suggest we wait and see, if Alvin appears with Berk's military might on the backs of dragons he will stand little chance on a boat."

"I'll call the village council together and start preparations quickly," Stoick nodded gratefully to the teens "Well done you two, rest well for now, Berk will have need of you in the coming weeks."

The pair smiled and nodded, Stoick got to his feet and left quickly, not a lot of time to waste with a potential war on your hands, Astrid's mother remained silently, apparently trying to find a way to begin.

"Haddock." She barked sharply, Hiccup stiffened against Astrid's back slightly.

"Yes Mrs. Hofferson?" He asked quickly.

"What are your intentions with my daughter?" The woman asked icily, he wasn't sure if she was mad or just being serious.

"I, uh," He glanced at Astrid for a moment, the blonde peered up at him curiously, obviously wanting an answer as well, they were Vikings, one wasn't usually permitted to be so physically close outside of betrothal, he let out a breath and paused for a moment, what were his intentions with Astrid, he looked down at her and she smiled at him warmly, her azure eyes catching the light and almost glowing in the sun, he smiled back, the answer was painfully obvious as he lifted his head "I want to continue to be with her, with the intentions of marriage, although I haven't spoke to my father about this or Astrid herself, if she will have me, nothing would make me happier." He delivered flatly, tone level and unfaltering.

Astrid's mother seemed taken aback, like she was expecting something else, even Astrid herself was surprised, she had expected Hiccup to say he wasn't sure, that he and Astrid hadn't spoken about it, not boldly declare he wanted to marry her, he did leave it for her to decide, she looked at her mother and then at Hiccup, both clearly wanted her answer, her thoughts and feelings on the matter, there was a time when the excited thrum of her heart in her chest would have irritated her, before she flew a dragon, before Hiccup had entered her life, before well, everything, but the happiness she felt at the idea of being engaged to Hiccup must have shown on her face, because Hiccup looked relieved before he smiled widely.

"If you're not opposed mother," Astrid began slowly "I would…very much like it if I could marry Hiccup."

Her mother bounded to her feet with a wide grin "Oh, of course I'm not opposed, it's a formality I have to ask him you're my little girl I won't have your feelings played with, he never seemed like the type anyway, but I mean you bagged the _chief's_ son even your father won't oppose this." Astrid's mother rambled quickly, Astrid and Hiccup relaxed slightly.

"Of course I have to go talk to your father and then Stoick, I think we will discuss it with him after the meeting and then announce it when this war business has been resolved, with blood or without and marriage needs to be a happy occasion with plenty of planning I will not have my little girls day ruined by a fiery boulder fired from an Outcast catapult." Astrid's mother practically growled, she paused realizing she was rambling and she took a deep breath, she placed a small basket at the foot of the bed.

"I'll leave you two alone to talk about this," She smiled and nodded her head "I made some food so make sure you both eat."

The pair nodded gratefully, Astrid's mother left the room quickly, when the woman was out of earshot Astrid removed Hiccups arms from herself and turned around, Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at her questioningly.

"So you want to marry me huh?" Astrid asked

"I do." Hiccup replied flatly, the conviction reflected in his eyes and Astrid shivered at the look, quickly pushing a few rather graphic thoughts from her mind, she placed her hands on either side of his neck.

"You haven't told me you love me yet, but you're willing to spend the rest of your life with me?" Astrid asked

Hiccup gave her a look, was she asking him to reconsider, if so why had she agreed, he doubted she wanted him to take it back, she fiddled with the edge of his hair idly, obviously waiting for something.

"You know now that I think about it," He began with a frown, rubbing at his chin in consideration, Astrid's mouth gaped in surprise and he grinned at her, she cocked her good arm back and slugged him in the chest, he grunted from the action "I can't say I feel anything but love for you." He finished confidently.

Astrid froze, her body stiffened over him and he peered at her, her cheeks colored darkly and she averted her gaze finding the edge of the bed incredibly interesting at the moment, Hiccup let out a silent chuckle as he lifted her chin with his thumb and forefinger, forcing her to look into his eyes as he leaned forward slowly, giving her a moment to rebuff him before he sealed their lips together, she melted into him as he moved his thumb lightly over her cheek, he pulled back after a moment, pressing a light kiss to the top of her head.

"I love your hair, it reminds me of morning sunlight, fresh air and summer," He whispered as he moved, a light kiss over her eyes "I love your eyes, every time I look at them I feel like I'm drowning just a little more, at the same time I'm intimidated by the intense fire they sometimes reflect." He moved down and kissed her lips again, deepening it only slightly as he pulled back.

"I love you Astrid Hofferson, with everything I have." He confessed, his voice a barely audible whisper.

Astrid let out a quick teary eyed laugh and Hiccup tilted his head, the large smile held on her face as she looked up at him, she considered mimicking his action but decided against out of fear of the sheer embarrassment, he planted a lingering kiss on his lips "I love you too."

"That's it huh? I give you a big grand romantic confession and you just keep it simple," Hiccup chuckled "I'll take it back."

"Too late," Astrid bopped his nose lightly with her finger "Besides I'm starving!"

Hiccup laughed as he shifted around, opening the basket Astrid's mother had left "We have," He announced quickly "Sandwiches."

His head lifted slightly and he frown "Honestly expected some kind of large and extravagant set that was…really anticlimactic."

Astrid chuckled as he handed her one of the sandwiches and nibbled on his own, Hiccup had that far off look in his eyes, the one her got when he was thinking about something important.

"Hiccup?" Astrid asked carefully.

"Hm?" He hummed questioningly

"I know that look, what's on your mind?" She asked, snapping him out of his reverie.

"Nothing really," He shrugged and yawned, he snapped the sandwich in his hand up quickly and shifted around on the bed, crossing his arms behind his head as he laid down "I'm just tired."

"Well you nap, I'll eat," Astrid half ordered half suggested as she chewed her food calmly "Then I'll nap some more too."

Hiccup chuckled "Okay."

Astrid sat quietly while she ate, glancing at Hiccup every so often to see if he was actually asleep, light snores began escaping his peaceful face and she leaned over him slowly, brushing his bangs away from his forehead slightly and tracing his jaw line idly, neither action caused him to stir, he seemed to settle in more as she rubbed his face so she continued "I love your hair too," She admitted sheepishly, glancing at him to make sure he didn't wake up "The way it always appears to be out of control but it's still so smooth to touch."

Her hand moved through his hair and his snores continued uninterrupted "I can't even begin to describe how much I love your eyes, their fire and determination at times, their bright curiosity at others."

Another snore broke the silence of her pause, her hand didn't stop it's movements "I even love your sarcasm and your dry humor although at times it's annoying."

She peered at his face again before leaning over and placing a light kiss against his forehead "I love how I feel in your arms, warm, safe, content like everything is and will be fine."

She moved the basket from the foot of the bed and laid down herself, his arms moved over her waist carefully, as if even in sleep he was careful with her, his nose brushed against the back of her head and Astrid moved just enough to peer up at him, she placed a light kiss on his cheek.

"I love you, Hiccup Haddock, with everything I have, I really do." She snuggled back into him, allowing the her tiredness to catch up with her as she fell asleep, blissfully unaware as Hiccup's face turned into a small smirk just before he decided to actually nap.

* * *

"Toothless!"

The black nightfury lifted his head tiredly and peered at his mate carefully, at this point he had given up opposing the bond they had created, even if she seemed as determined to dislike him as ever.

"What is it milady?" Toothless inquired lazily, letting his head fall back to the ground.

"You said there were caves on this island, you said you'd help me find one to live in." Ghost reminded flatly

Toothless groaned as he got to his feet "There are many, but I thought you had decided to stay in the village, those humans from before will likely attack are you really going to just leave the humans on their own."

"A human war should be fought by humans," Ghost stated simply "Leave us dragon kind out of it."

"Ordinarily I'd agree with you, but the Vikings of Berk and the Dragons of Berk co-exist peacefully here, each needs the other, without the humans that fish you've been enjoying so much wouldn't be there." Toothless snapped, still tired from the events of the day before.

"Fine, I'll help them if an attack comes, but I won't let anyone ride me again once was more than enough." Ghost snapped as she plopped down.

"Why are you just hanging around here anyway?" Ghost asked, lifting her head enough to peer at her mate.

"I can't fly on my own, my humans mate is injured and he will stay with her to keep her safe so, I am simply resting, I will be needed if a war comes," Toothless explained before his voice dropped low and threatening "Alvin will not escape me again."

Ghost smirked "I think your human shares your sentiment, he shot down his mate."

Toothless glanced at her but said nothing "Why are you so against a rider?"

Ghost peered at him "A Nightfury's freedom is not so easily relinquished."

"Do I appear caged to you?" Toothless asked truthfully

Ghost paused, she glanced at his tail before she spoke "You need the human to have even a hope of freedom, I don't need one to fly at all."

"Is flight what makes your free? I feel as free on the ground as I do in the air here," Toothless replied calmly, speaking with experience she couldn't imagine, he had come to terms with the fact that he would never fly on his own again but he did not see himself caged "A rider isn't a cage, they are a companion, a friend almost like a mate only not as lifelong and annoying."

Ghost shot him a look and Toothless warbled in amusement "Whatever you may say I think you liked having a rider."

"I didn't," Ghost snapped "Not even a little bit."

"And I am a ten foot long Gronkle with razorwings," Toothless teased quickly " I think you liked the idea of not having to be alone all the time and that's why you came here with me in the first place, I think you aren't as opposed to being mates as you pretend to be and I think you want a rider."

"I want a cave," Ghost shot at him "I don't oppose us being mates I just don't think something done out of spite should control our actions and I do _not_ want a rider."

Toothless chuckled "So, if I told you I did not accept your fish out of spite how would you reply, milady?"

Ghost froze, glared at him and blew a small fireball at his feet before flying off wordlessly.

Toothless placed his head on the ground comfortably, he felt like he understood what his human had felt like the first few visits to the cove, all the nervous tip-toeing.

* * *

"I'd like to thank you all for meeting me on such short notice," Stoick addressed the council calmly "I have received the report from Hiccup and Astrid, explaining their absence and Astrid's injuries."

The council quieted their whispers and listened intently.

"It seems this was the work of Alvin the Treacherous of the Outcast tribe, he was using the island Hiccup discovered as a staging area for men and ships closer to Berk, Hiccup believes that he will still attack in hopes he can catch us off guard but he also suggested defense." Stoick explained "I have taken his council into consideration and I agree, I believe bolstering our defenses for now is the best course of action, I will not interrupt Berk's peace and march for a war that may have been halted." Stoick finished flatly.

"I agree with Hiccup," Egil stood quickly "If Alvin wishes a war and attacks our soil, we will repel him with the full might of Berks Vikings and the Dragons that we have by our sides, no attack his men can mount will be impossible to force back."

"And with the same dragons we can crush him as he retreats, ensuring he will never attempt an attack of Berk's soil again." Spitelout added angrily, Stoick had thought the man would be more for an all out attack, apparently Berk's time of peace had sharpened his mind.

"We are forgetting something important." Stoick practically growled as Mildew walked to the table, the old man was considered an Elder and as such commanded the respect of one, even if he was a weasley old coot to stubborn to accept the change of Berk.

"And what would that be Mildew," Stoick replied as curtly as he was allowed "I'll not have any of your games either, spit it out true or you'll be thrown out for wasting our time."

Mildew grinned, a gap toothed evil smile the man only used when he felt he had won "We are trusting dragons to fight our battles for us, since when have Berkian's been so weak they have to rely on an enemy of our own kind to beat back an Outcast?"

Stoick muttered a curse under his breath, of course the old man would try to play to a Vikings pride, Stoick could see faces shifting on the council, many already siding with Mildew at the sheer mention of them being called weak.

Egil got to his feet again, his intelligence was always recognized, Stoick hoped it was enough "Mildew is correct, it is the old Berkian way to repel threats with iron and strength not fire and allies."

"You see?" Mildew began before Egil glared at him, the man was not one to be cut off and Mildew quickly quieted.

"But we do not live in Old Berk _anymore,_ " Egil continued and Mildew gaped "Gone are the days when a Viking would kill a dragon for honor, honor is gained from the dragon you tame, the dragon you forge a bond stronger than any iron we can forge, if the Outcasts attacked tomorrow, I would naught want any other, than my trusted dragon at my side and sword in my hand, to fight them off."

Stoick grinned, the man's words had instant effect, it spread through the council quickly, the inspiration quickly turned to cheers and cheers turned to action as men went to request better saddles and weapons, all of them prepared to defend Berk with their fellow Vikings and Dragons besides them.

Stoick approached Mildew after the crowd had dispersed "Mildew, your status as an elder is the only reason you are allowed in these meetings, but even that does not override my authority as chief, if you try to spread discord through the ranks of my men, I will not hesitate to send you to Hel swiftly, am I completely understood?"

Mildew nodded fearfully as Stoick strode passed him.

* * *

 **A/N: The Defense of Berk begins, someone asked how I would be handling the Mildew situation and so this chapter pretty much sums it up, Astrid and Hiccup are engaged (Although not publicly.) I would like to apologize for the sheer amount of layered cheese I put on this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it anyway it's just the way it turned out, if you liked the chapter please drop a follow and feel free to check out my other stories and I will see you guys in the next one, peace!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: I know right, nearly a week without an update? I had better have died gone to the spirit world and come back a fricken reaper right? No, that didn't happen, it'd be cool but nah, just life was doing life things and I haven't been able to get around to writing for a solid period of time!**

 **Before you start the chapter, if you're interested, there is a poll up on my profile, I am trying to determine what story I should write next so the two AU's are detailed in my profile and on the poll itself, so if you want check that out! Without further ado, onto the chapter!**

* * *

It had been a few days since Hiccup and Astrid had spent the time in Gothi's hut, most of it still felt like a dream to Astrid as she walked through the village, her ribs already mostly healed thanks to Hiccups quick thinking and knowledge of herbs, her shoulder only gave her minor problems occasionally and the swelling had greatly reduced, other than a flew blotched bruises on her arm and ribs you'd think she was perfectly fine.

Hiccup hadn't left the room she was staying in while she was recovering, it created an odd mix of irritation and happiness, she was irritated because she still felt that he was pitying her because she had been injured even if her rational mind knew that wasn't the case, she was happy, well because Hiccup worried about her, the paradox of emotions had been difficult to deal with.

The moment Hiccup had left the healers hut Gobber had practically kidnapped him and confined him to the forge, so Astrid hadn't seen him since the day he left, going on four days now and she had decided to take matters into her own hands.

She leaned over the counter of the forge idly and glanced around the inside, the place was swelteringly hot, just leaning her head in caused her head to immediately bead sweat, apparently they hadn't rested the fires much with a potential war going on.

Her eyes finally fell on Hiccup, the boy had abandoned as much clothing as possible and was still sweating profusely, his armor and undershirt were discarded and his pants clung to him as he bent steel with a large hammer, his face contorted in determination and concentration, teeth bared ever so slightly at the effort he was exerting to keep up with the orders for weapons, not that Astrid would complain. The way the sweat rolled from his arms as he moved, the biceps, his chest clearly visible under the tightened forging umbrella, a line of black soot marred the centre of his face.

He cooled the sword he was making and tossed it to Gobber, retrieving a washcloth, she presumed it was soaked with cold water, from the wall he rubbed at his face, he caught sight of Astrid and he strode towards her, a little more confidence in his step than usual.

She cursed his ability to read her so well as he leant over the countertop, that lop-sided half grin on his face and a mischievous glint in his eye. She lifted an eyebrow and brushed a stray bang from her face in an attempt to hide her blush and sneak another peak as the muscle he hid under the armor her always wore.

"Like what you see?" He asked confidently, eyes glinting ever so slightly from the light of the forge.

"I think you should go shirtless more often," Astrid commented calmly, forcing her face to remain neutral "It's a good look."

Hiccup smirked as he leaned forward, she met him half way in a quick kiss "I'm sure that can be arranged." He whispered into her ear huskily.

Astrid shivered slightly despite the heat, her cheeks glowed slightly as she pulled back "So, confined to the forge huh?"

"Not anymore, that was the last order!" Hiccup exclaimed excitedly as he moved into the back of the forge, he returned, armor in his hand clean undershirt and a device that looked similar to Toothless current fin.

Astrid eyed the contraption curiously as Hiccup exited the forge, his outward appearance garnered little attention, a shirtless Viking was not all that abnormal and everyone knew Hiccup worked at the forge, he shifted the armor on his shoulder and leaned a little away from his prosthetic as it clicked into place.

"I really need to make those tweaks." Hiccup thought audibly wincing as the leg slipped slightly due to the sweat currently blanketing his entire form.

"Want some help?" Astrid offered, taking the fin and offering him a shoulder.

Hiccup lifted an eyebrow before nodding, a grateful smile on his face as he leaned onto her slightly, just barely taking the weight off his leg as they moved.

"Thanks." He voiced quickly.

"No problem, we'll be married sooner or later, I mean, looking after you is going to be a full time thing." Astrid joked as she forced him to lean on her a little more.

"Really, says the girl who fell of her dragon and got _saved_ by me." Hiccup teased in retort.

"This and that are completely unrelated issues." Astrid defended quickly.

"Well, this and that aside, I really need a bath," Hiccup sighed as he moved away from her "Unless you want to join me?"

Astrid gaped at him, he did not just? She titled her head to the side and let a challenging grin fall on her face, Hiccup stared at her with a mischievous grin of his own "You know, now that I think about it." She walked towards him, stalked would be a more appropriate term, the sway of her hips was nothing short of dangerous as she placed a finger against her chest.

She moved her hand along the muscle and forced her face to remain completely composed as she dragged her nail lightly along it, secretly enjoying the way his breath hitched under her hand and the way the muscle tightened under her hand "I never did _thank_ you for saving me." She purred into his ear as she moved passed him towards the baths.

Hiccup stood with a dumbfounded expression on his face, a small grin fell on his face as he followed after her, adrenaline and reckless abandon fueling their actions.

* * *

They arrived at Berks natural hot springs relatively quickly, the moment Hiccups foot touched stone, Astrid practically slammed into him, lips claiming his heatedly as her arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him close, Hiccup deepened the kiss quickly hands finding her face and drawing small circles on the side of her stomach in a slow methodical motion as he moved her backwards.

Her back touched a stone and his hands wrapped around her legs and pulled her into the air, her legs wrapped around his waist as her broke the kiss only a moment to breath, while Astrid caught her breath he moved down her neck, nibbling, biting and suckling experimentally her breath caught in her throat as he found a spot on the side of her neck, his eyebrow raised and she could see the smile reflected in his eyes as he focused on that spot, Astrid bit her lip and attempt to stifle a moan, the action only succeeded in making him double his efforts, eventually producing the desired sound effect from her throat, he claimed her lips again quickly, tongue probing lightly on her lower lip.

She parted her mouth enough for them to poke at each other carefully, neither had any experience it was all feeling and instinct as the contact quickly became a war, each battling each other inside their mouths as Astrid pushed Hiccup back, breaking the kiss long enough for her top to be pulled over her head and discarded, the clothing barely left her hand when Hiccup pulled her flush against him, the sensation of his skin against her set her whole body on fire as her chest binding did very little to shield her chest from the onslaught of new sensations.

Astrid lifted an eyebrow and paused Hiccup with a hand on his chest, he gave her a questioning look, until she gave him a sharp shove, a surprised cry escaped his mouth as he toppled backwards and landed in the hot spring, his head broke the surface of the water a moment later and he grinned, padding towards her carefully and wincing.

Astrid's eyes widened and she rushed over to him quickly, had she hurt his leg when she pushed him? the moment she reached the edge of the water his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist she gasped in surprise before she was submerged in the water, she broke the surface and glared at him as he tossed his leg over the edge followed quickly by his trousers, leaving the pair of them in only their undergarments.

Hiccup tilted his head slightly and flashed a wide grin as he moved towards her, his hand paused on her waist as he pulled her into him, if only dry undergarments provided new sensations, matted wet ones were an entirely new set of feelings, Astrid moaned as he rocked against her slowly, his mouth closing over hers in her moment of distraction his tongue snaked around her mouth as his hand fumbled with the clasp of her chest binding as the fabric was finally snapped loose Hiccup abruptly stopped and his eyes widened.

"Ah, it's a wonderful day for a bath!" Both of them new that voice, Stoick was moving towards them, Astrid's head darted around the pool, he was close enough that if she got out there's no way she'd avoid him, her clothing was pretty well hidden by the steam, Hiccup glanced a low rock jutting from the edge of the pool and the quickly moved around it, Astrid got as low as she could and Hiccup positioned himself to block her, his eyes widened in terror as he noticed her chest binding still floating in the centre of the bath, he dived for it and managed to make it back to the rock before Stoick came into view.

"Ah, Hiccup it's one of those days isn't it?" Stoick announced excitedly as he disrobed and climbed into the pool, sighing in contentment as he sat down.

"Yeah," Hiccup replied nervously, they were in such a position that he could feel Astrid's chest pressed against his back, he couldn't hand her the binding because it'd be too obvious, so they were forced to stay like that "Gobber didn't let me rest at all."

"Aye," Stoick chuckled as he relaxed further "Can't ever be too prepared for a war."

"Of course," Hiccup nodded his head slightly "I finished the last order before I came here."

"Egil and his wife approached me after the war meeting," Stoick announced, Astrid's breath hitched, what if Stoick was against them getting together? Neither of them had thought of him being opposed "Pretty bold, declaring your intentions to the best axe wielder in all of Berk."

"Astrid would nev-" Hiccup began before he was cut off.

"I was talking about her mother, before she was the kind woman you know she was a fearsome shield maiden," Stoick explained "I have a feeling you'd have lost more than one limb if you had said something else."

Hiccup laughed nervously "So how'd the meeting go?" He could tell Astrid was nervous behind him, although he couldn't really place that nervousness on any one thing.

"You decisions are your own son," Stoick inclined his head respectfully "If you care for her who am I to attempt to stop you?"

Astrid breathed a sigh of relief that Hiccup covered with a chuckle and a cough "Thanks dad, she…really means a lot to me."

"I can tell." Stoick smiled

The silence remained for a few stagnant moments before Stoick slapped his hands together "You want some advice?"

"Sure?" Hiccup responded carefully.

"Your both young and inexperienced," Hiccup really wished he had declined the offer with just that sentence "You won't be great on your first time, believe me, I was horrible, I could barely look your mother in the face for days!"

"Oh." Hiccup let out in embarrassment.

Astrid's eyes widened, they had been just about to! Now she was listening to Stoick giving advice about it too Hiccup, what kind of cruel game were the gods playing today?!

"Believe me, it's all about taking your time," Stoick explained with a smirk "In fact the longer and more teasing you make it the better! Hel make them beg for it if you have to!"

"Uh." Hiccup sounded nervously "Yeah, I'll be sure to do that."

"Good, well I've got cheifing to get too," Stoick exclaimed, sensing the awkward mood even if he himself created it, he figured it would be better for Hiccup to know earlier "I'll see you later."

"Yeah dad, see you later." Hiccup sounded, curbing his enthusiasm so he actually sounded normal was difficult for that one, he realized Astrid was struggling to contain laughter behind him, her shoulders shuddered causing good or bad friction against his back depending on how you looked at it, Hiccup's hand moved slowly to her side and she froze as he drew a small circle on her inner thigh, effectively quieting her.

Stoick retrieved his clothing and moved down the hill slightly, both of the teens waited in complete silence until his thudding footsteps had completely faded out of earshot before they breathed.

Hiccup pushed away and turned away, thankful the steam hid everything but Astrid's face from view, the pair of them glowed a new color palate of reds as Astrid climbed out of the pool quietly, quickly retrieving her clothes and pulling them on, Hiccup did the same and neither looked at each other until Hiccup was pulling on his arm guards.

"Well that was uh…" Hiccup trailed off.

"The part where your dad walked in? embarrassing," Astrid agreed quickly, she grabbed his arm and pecked him on the cheek lightly "Everything else was great."

Hiccup titled his head as she sauntered away from him, that shake of the hips was definitely intentional he concluded as he followed after her, retrieving the new fin as they made their way to Toothless and Ghost.

* * *

Toothless lifted his head tiredly as Hiccup emerged from the trees, Astrid a few steps behind him, Toothless snorted, he recognized the small wafting off the teens easily although he could conclude they hadn't completely mated as of yet, they were close, no doubt about that in his mind.

"Hey bud," Hiccup smiled calmly as he held up new tail, similar to the old one, only it had two distinct functions, first and most importantly "This will let you fly on your own." Hiccup explained, Astrid's eyes widened in surprise and Ghost stared at Toothless in surprise, she really hadn't believed him when he said this human was different.

"Of course I can still fly with you and I can even hook in like I do now," Hiccup explained "Just thought you'd like the extra feature," He leaned towards Toothless and whispered quietly "Just in case."

Toothless gave him a look and Hiccup chuckled as he put the new device on, Toothless gave the tail a few experimental waves "I said I'd help you look for a cave correct?"

"You did." Ghost nodded

"I propose a wager," Toothless turned to the female with the dragon equivalent of a grin "If I beat you around the island, you'll stay here with me."

Ghost's eyebrow lifted questioningly "If you win, I'll find you the cave _and_ I'll leave you alone."

Toothless finished, Ghost considered for a moment "Done, you had better know a good cave on this island!"

"Hah! You're a hundred years too early to be that confident!" Toothless challenged as he lowered his body towards the ground, both dragons poised for a moment before slamming into the air with a powerful wing beat.

Hiccup admired his work from the ground as Ghost and Toothless sped over the village, he had faith Toothless would be back, he trusted his friend just as Toothless trusted him.

"I should probably get home." Astrid announced glancing at the sun, the orb was now setting on the horizon painting the sky orange, red and blue hues, the glow on Astrid's face caused Hiccup's breath the leave his body of its own accord.

Astrid glanced at him, a small smile on her face as she walked over to him and placed a small kiss on his lips "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Hiccup nodded his head "Definitely."

* * *

 **A/N: Will everything really go so smoothly?! Find out next time! Honestly this entire chapter was kind of played by ear, I had a very basic outline and not a lot of content and this is what my mind ended up producing so I hope you enjoyed!**

 **Now for some replies!**

 **Winner123: Yes, Hiccup will get Inferno eventually, as well as the Gronkle Iron shield he wielded in the show I have an arc planned out that will require the sword and the shield so it will be coming in soon!**

 **Discardless: It's fine, useful criticism is always helpful! But as you said my style is a pretty much a habit at this point, I'll try and bring it around and correct more mistakes as I go but I can't promise massive changes in the format as of now! I'm glad you've enjoyed the story so far though!**

 **Midnight510: I've made Mildew an elder for a number of reasons, the most obvious one is his age, but I think his opinions were always respected to some degree in the show so he had to have some kind of importance beyond just crabby old man.**

 **I'd like to thank each and every one of you for reviewing, you guys are awesome, I'll try to respond to questions in these segments that remain unanswered, if I don't reply to you directly it's because the next chapter will likely explain the question you have with that, If you liked it, drop a follow, check out my poll and other stories if you are interested and I will see you in the next one, peace!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: We broke the hundred review mark! *Party poppers* *confetti cannons* *cheering*, we actually broke it just after I released the last chapter which received one of the largest responses for single chapter yet, almost 20 reviews on its own! You guys are actually crazy, but hey now I know all your fetishes ;), I'm kidding, I'm sure it was purely coincidental, but the requests for an all-out-lemon in this story are actually starting to rack up, at this point I'm still on the fence but I'm leaning more towards writing one than not doing so, the people who are uncomfortable with it can just skip it I'll mark it properly and stuff, sorry for the long authors notes, I'm sure you eager to get into the chapter!**

* * *

Hiccup walked out of the back door into the small yard as Toothless landed with a loud thud, the dragon warbled in amusement as Ghost landed a few moments after him a clearly displeased expression marring her face.

"I win." Toothless gloated playfully.

"Hmph." Was the flat response from Ghost as she ignited the ground under her feet and settled down.

Hiccup scratched at Toothless head quickly "Hey bud, I'll come back to fly with you later, Berk isn't going to defend itself I need to make sure the others are ready."

Toothless glanced at Ghost as if to say he had a way to pass the time and Hiccup chuckled, checking his knife for a moment before setting off towards the old dragon arena.

* * *

He arrived quickly, he walked inside slowly and peered around, nothing had changed in the unused place, scorch marks, a rack of weapons and shields discarded against the wall, Hiccup approached the small pile of weapons, eyeing the shields carefully, shields were practical and important but the general bulky shape of the Viking shields irritated him and made it difficult to maneuver, he glanced at his armguard and back at the shield, the gears of his mind beginning to turn slowly as he thought about designs.

Surprisingly, Ruffnut and Fishlegs were the first to arrive, the female twins brother strangely absent caused Hiccup to raise an eyebrow, although the fact that neither of them were conversing didn't give Hiccup any ideas he could be bother following.

"Hiccup, why have you called us here? Honestly I don't have the best memories of this place." Fishlegs announced nervously.

"I'll explain when everyone's here Legs, its important, that's all your getting for now." Hiccup replied calmly as he took a seat.

Astrid and Tuffnut arrived a few moments later, seeming as though they had practically bumped into each other at the gate as they walked in, Astrid flashed Hiccup a quick smile and waved, he returned the action with a nod and a smirk.

Snotlout was the last to arrive "Why do we have to meet in the stupid old arena we don't use anymore."

"I'll make is very, _very_ simple," Hiccup announced as he got to his feet, eyeing the twins obviously "None of you are even remotely ready to fight an Outcast soldier on the ground."

The reactions varied, Astrid had already kind of expected this, Snotlout looked as though Hiccup had offended his greatest ancestors, Fishlegs paled, Tuffnut said something about making things bleed was a specialty of his and Ruffnut just grinned.

"I won't hear any arguments," Hiccup quelled quickly "Frankly if you are separated from your dragons you need to be able to defend yourselves, we might well be in a warzone in the coming weeks, being unprepared will kill you."

"So what, we are supposed to spar against _you_?" Snotlout snorted

"As the only one here who has fought and _killed_ Outcasts, yes Snotlout, you'll be trying to beat me." Hiccup countered flatly.

Snotlout grumbled something about being lucky but didn't argue further.

Hiccup pointed at the large stack of weapons "Pick a weapon and a shield if you want it, then come at me, I don't care if it's all at once or one at a time."

The teens moved towards the pile of weapons calmly, Astrid had her axe with her so she inspected the shields calmly, not in a hurry to fight Hiccup at all and content to just sit back and watch the others, Snotlout darted for a sword before rushing Hiccup just as quickly.

Hiccup sidestepped the boys wild swing and tripped him "You just died once." He announced coldly as he rolled the large boy away.

Tuffnut was the second to approach, taking the mace and a small dagger, Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at the twin as he launched the dagger, Hiccup titled his head to the side and let the knife fly passed his head, Hiccups blade came into his hand as Snotlout rushed him from behind, Snotlout's sword clanged off Hiccups knife as the boy pivoted around and kicked Tuffnut in the back, the blonde boy looked around as if confused as to where Hiccup had gone as Hiccup deflected Snotlout's second blow and brought his blade to the larger boys neck, freezing before he could cut him.

"Snotlout's died twice already, anyone want to at least try to avoid getting killed?" Hiccup announced cockily, trying to get the teens to come at him more fervently.

Hiccup ducked a mace swing and rolled out of the way, his knife paused just shy of Tuff's ribcage and the boy froze "That's one death for you Tuff."

Fishlegs retrieved a hammer and shield before moving towards Hiccup in a much slower manner, the large boys grip tightened on his hammer "I'm much more at home with a book than a weapon Hiccup." Fishlegs sounded nervously.

"Fishlegs, as a dragon rider you'll be called onto defend Berk, just like the rest of us." Hiccup explained as he parried Snotlout and quickly elbowed the boy in the stomach.

Fishlegs seemed to accept that as he darted forward, Hiccup sidestepped the hammer swing and Fishlegs swung his shield around, Hiccup jumped back and the shield slammed into Tuffnut's chest, sending the twin sprawling over the ground.

"Not sure If count that as a kill for Fishlegs or a death for Tuffnut." Hiccup laughed, Fishlegs glanced at the downed twin worriedly, Tuffnut jumped to his feet and clapped his hands together, obviously unfazed.

Fishlegs breathed a quick sigh of relief.

Hiccup switched his stance "You didn't think I'd defend the whole time did you?" He asked as the teens glanced at each other nervously, even Snotlout had ceased his onslaught of get up and get knocked back down.

Hiccup launched forward, Snotlout stepped forward and swung wide, using his long swords reach against Hiccup's shorter blade, Hiccup smirked about time they started thinking smart, he thought to himself as he abruptly halted, Fishlegs stepped in and battered Hiccup back with the shield as Tuffnut reacquired his dagger and tossed it, Hiccup spun to the left, the knife barely grazing passed his helmet as he planted a foot on Fishlegs shield and used as a platform, he tumbled over the large boy and brought the backside of his blade to cut across Fishlegs back as he spun in and paused a few millimeters from Snotlout's gut.

"That's ridiculous, the Outcasts don't fight like that!" Snotlout exclaimed in irritation.

"No, I fight better than them, you stand toe-to-toe with me you will have issue with them." Hiccup responded, quickly silenced any protests with simple logic.

"You three take a break, you've died a few times each, Snotlout your up at thirteen deaths," Hiccup announced quickly "I'm a little worried about you apparent 'warrior family'."

Snotlout jut scoffed "I'll make sure to take this seriously when I come back then." The boy announced boldly.

Hiccup glanced at Astrid and Ruffnut, neither had picked up a shield, Ruffnut spun a long spear in her hand as Astrid twirled her axe, something about the glint in Ruffnut's eyes unnerved him before she rushed him, Hiccup backstopped to avoid the long thrust of the pole arm and spun in as Ruffnut slammed her palm down on the edge of the weapon, quickly rolling it over her neck and bring the blade whirling passed Hiccups face, Hiccup rolled back his want of a shield only increasing as she rushed him, he avoided each attack by a few inches as his back touched against the wall he clicked hi tongue, careless mistakes like this were liable to get him killed one day, Ruffnut clicked back and stabbed at his chest, Hiccup jumped into the air avoiding the attack before using the uneven wall as a step and jumping over her head, against cutting at her back with the flat of his blade causing her now harm.

Hiccup gave her a quick salute as he smirked, Astrid's battle cry caused him to drop into a quick slide, his knife deflecting the axe blade over his head, his swipe at her was dodged by a quick back step, Astrid twirled the large axe on her hand as if were a pen, bringing it around her body and towards him a quick upward slice, Hiccup sidestepped and she grabbed the axe and brought it across, forcing him to duck low before a quick spin turned the blade back towards him and he jumped back.

It didn't surprise him Astrid didn't need any extra help, Ruffnut's skill with a spear had however taken him off guard, she need very little help her use of the weapon was nothing short of expert.

"So the girls have beaten the guys in every sense of the term." Hiccup taunted, even Fishlegs seemed a little more eager to spar again.

"Let's see how many times you die this time Snotlout." Hiccup teased as he moved casually to the centre of the arena.

Fishlegs rushed first, slamming the hammer down and causing Hiccup to jump back as Tuffnut circled him to the left and Snotlout to the right, Hiccup flipped his knife into the air, his head leaned back slightly as the weapon flicked passed his eyes, Snotlout moved forward and Hiccup snatched the weapon from the air as he darted right, sliding passed Snotlout the only evidence that Hiccup had made a cut being the jacket that Snotlout wore over his shirt splitting in two.

Tuffnut spun the dagger around his fingers as Hiccup rushed towards him, he gripped the dagger quickly and parried Hiccup's first blow, he was not about to be shown up by his sister, the follow up mace swing caused Hiccup to back off a step, Tuffnut advanced slowly, taking a quick step forward and swing to the side, his use of a mace meant Hiccup couldn't effectively block for fear of losing his weapon and the dagger made an excellent parry weapon, the combo just made combat generally difficult.

Hiccup paused for a moment to take a breath, before launching forward, his prosthetic clinked as he slid low, he caught Tuff's boat with his foot and took the boys leg out from under him, Tuffnut grunted as he hit the ground but rolled to his feet fast enough, sending the dagger at Hiccup in a quick flick of the wrist, Hiccup deflected it with a loud cling.

Hiccup's eyebrow raised slightly behind his mask, Tuffnut smirked full aware his sudden shift in skill had intrigued Hiccup, the blonde shrugged "Just because I'm not serious doesn't mean I can't be."

"He's actually got some skill with a mace," Ruffnut added from the wall she was leaning on "When he's not being an idiot he's a pretty competent fighter."

Hiccup tilted his head and gestured to the wall, Tuffnut smirked as he leaned beside his sister, Fishlegs waited until Hiccup nodded before the sparring resumed, Snotlout stood a small distance behind the large boy, seemingly waiting for an opportunity to take Hiccup on his own.

Hiccup shifted effortlessly out of Fishlegs swipe, but before he could counter Fishlegs swung his shield around, again forcing Hiccup to move back instead of attacking, Hiccup gritted his teeth as he deflected the hammer, Hiccup's open hand clenched for a moment as he back stepped, he turned it deflecting the hammer and slamming his palm into the shield, the wood groaned loudly under the blow but the shield remained intact, Fishlegs pushed Hiccup with a quick shove.

Hiccup floated just out of the larger boys reach, Fishlegs let out a quiet growl as he leaned a little too far forward, Hiccup used the over extension to his advantage, taking Fishlegs weight over his shoulder before slamming him down, Fishlegs groaned from the ground and Hiccup rubbed at this helmet awkwardly.

"Maybe we should see about getting you a strategy job." Hiccup offered.

"No," Fishlegs toned surprised the teens in the arena "I may not like violence, but…I don't want to just sit around while my friends are out fighting, I'll fight too, please let me fight too."

Hiccup smirked "You had better start taking it more seriously, you need just as much if not more work than Snotlout, Ruffnut!"

The female twin stood sharply at the boys tone "Your gonna help train Fish, I think your styles complement each other well."

Ruffnut eyed the back of Hiccups head curiously, Astrid lifted an eyebrow and Fishlegs visibly paled "Uh, Hiccup, I thought I could keep sparring with you," Fishlegs piped up "Someone who won't kill me." He added meekly.

"I won't kill you," Ruffnut grinned "Make a man out of you, yes, kill you, no."

The reassurance did little to calm Fishlegs as Hiccup moved back to the centre of the arena.

"Alright Snotlout, how many times you want to die today? Going for twenty?" Hiccup taunted

Snotlout gritted his teeth but didn't charge like Hiccup had expected, instead the boy took a wider stance and held the blade out in front of him, the pair eyed each other and slowly circled each other, Snotlout's stance reminded Hiccup of the day he had fought the boy's father in the forest.

Hiccup titled his head to the side curiously "If you're going to stay over there." He flipped his weapon into the air, Hiccup placed a fist against his hip as he caught the handle deftly before he turned in a quick flourish and tossed it, Snotlout started at the sudden attack and lifted the sword to deflect it, the blade pinged off the sword and flipped towards Hiccup who jumped to catch it and slam both his feet into Snotlout's chest.

Snotlout staggered back and moved forward sword slicing forward in a quick thrust, Hiccup deflected but Snotlout was using the weapon in a way that by the time Hiccup could alter his footing another thrust was flying at him, the sword was poorly built for the style, Hiccup sidestepped a pair of quick strikes and a slash came at his shoulder, Hiccup back stepped out of reach, but Snotlout had a faster reaction to the shift than his father and caught himself before he overextended, Snotlout used the turn in momentum to spin into a quick slash Hiccup darted forward Snotlout's sword grated in his blade as Hiccup closed in and slammed his fist into Snotlout's jaw, Snotlout's sword fell to the ground as he staggered back and held his mouth, Snotlout sent him a glare.

Hiccup bent to pick up the sword and inspect it "This sword isn't well suited for the style you were using."

"I'm aware," Snotlout grunted crossing his arms "But Viking swords are all we have here."

Hiccup scratched at his chin calmly "I'll figure something out, give me a day, I'll make you a sword you can use for that style of yours, where'd you learn it anyway?"

"Johann once brought this guard here, he used a style he called 'royal swordplay' it was the only time I ever saw my father so easily bested so I asked him to teach me, he showed me the basic forms and told me to use my imagination for the rest." Snotlout explained quickly.

Hiccup nodded "We'll meet here again tomorrow, I'll have something for each of you."

Astrid lifted an eyebrow, that meant Hiccup planned to sit in the forge all night and build things, she sighed as everyone left "You don't have to take this all on your own you know?" She asked flatly

"I wasn't planning to," He lifted his helmet and smirked "I simply want everyone prepared, they can't fight well if their weapons are unsuited for their styles."

"So that's why you weren't going all out, you just wanted to see _how_ they fought, not necessarily how _well_ they fought." Astrid's eyes widened at the realization.

"Correct milady." Hiccup chuckled as he began leaving, he already had an idea for a better design of sword for Snotlout, the others seemed to have settled into the weapons they had but the training weapons were not created specifically for them, making them awkward, Ruff's reliance on thrusts made that clear, she hadn't attempted any other spins with the spear after the first one, which meant she wasn't confident in the weapon being able to handle, Astrid axe was fine, Tuffnut's mace was top heavy, the boy had continually overextended due to its weight, Fishlegs was simply too timid, which is why he had gotten Ruffnut to teach him, if anyone could activate the boys warrior instinct it'd be her.

"If only we had something that was lighter than iron but didn't lose strength," Hiccup murmured in irritation, if he made a lighter mace there was the possibility of it breaking, he still hadn't figured out what material his knife was made out, he just knew it was strong he didn't have the slightest inkling of what it was or how to refine, mine or forge it "There is only so much I can do with the materials we have."

* * *

Fishlegs fell onto his back with a sigh, his Gronkle Meatlug, warbled a few meters from him as she ate a few rocks, Fishlegs snapped a berry from a nearby bush and dropped it in his mouth "I know I need to learn how to fight properly girl, it's hard, I can't understand why Hiccup paired me with Ruffnut, but he doesn't do anything without thought." Fishlegs sighed as he ate another berry "That is assuming I can even learn to fight, I died seven times in that ring today girl, granted it was to Hiccup, but still!"

Meatlug just shook her form in a shrug, eating another rock.

Fishlegs hopped to his feet and swung his arm around as if holding an imaginary hammer "The weapon I was using was a little unbalanced, but that's no excuse! Ah, this is irritating, why couldn't there just be a book about this!"

"Well, I mean technically there are," Fishlegs jumped at the voice, Ruffnut emerged from the rocks behind him and sat down on the cliff overlooking the ocean "There are hordes of books on fighting styles, from everywhere, Johann brings more almost every time he visits, that's how me and Tuffnut learned at first."

"You guys…actually read?" Fishlegs asked in confusion.

"Well yeah, we don't like it, but it's necessary sometimes," Ruffnut shrugged "Besides, it helped us with at least the type of weapons we wanted to use, of course no amount of reading in the world will prepare us for an actual fight…for actually _killing_ people."

The girl rubbed at her arms nervously "I mean, I know _why_ I might need to and if I had to make a choice between my family and keeping my hands free of blood, I'd pick my family every time."

Fishlegs sat down slowly beside her "I agree, I don't think I'd be able to sleep at night if I knew my decision ended up costing the life of a villager."

"So for starters," Ruffnut perked up quickly "What kind of weapon do you want to use?"

"Ingerman's have always been partial to war hammers." Fishlegs replied with a chuckle.

"Two handed or one? Curved handle? Double sided, spiked?" Ruffnut questioned quickly.

Fishlegs eyes widened, he had honestly only thought there were just one kind of hammer "Uh." He let out dumbly.

Ruffnut rolled her eyes "Follow me."

"Wait wha-?" Fishlegs let out in surprise as she grabbed his wrist and pulled him to his feet.

Meatlug let out a low displeased growl and Fishlegs turned towards her with a frown, Meatlug flopped onto her side for a moment before she shifted back to her feet and wretched, lava leaked from her mouth over the ground and the two teens shifted back quickly, the burning liquid flowed over the cliff and into the ocean, leaving behind a thin sheet of shining silver metal, Fishlegs frowned and leaned down, placing his hand on the metal and withdrawing his hand with a hiss.

"Is it hot?" Ruffnut asked

"No, it's freezing," Fishlegs replied in confusion.

Ruffnut picked up one of the rocks Meatlug had been eating when she arrived, she pulled off her helmet and slammed the thing down on the rock, the rock split open and fell in half, revealing lines of dark ore running through them "These rocks have iron in them."

"So, Meatlug ate iron and made…this?" Fishlegs picked up the sheet.

"I assume so, I've never seen iron that shiny before." Ruffnut noted

"Maybe the lava in her stomach purified it!" Fishlegs exclaimed excitedly "I mean, when we mine iron no matter how careful we are there is always rock left in it!"

"So your saying that iron and _only_ iron came out of Meatlug's stomach?" Ruffnut asked quickly.

"Exactly, Hiccup should see this, it would be much stronger than normal iron _and_ it's lighter!" Fishlegs exclaimed as he lifted the sheet easily.

"Gronkle Iron!" Ruffnut exclaimed naming the new metal quickly.

"Fitting." Fishlegs chuckled as the pair darted through the rocks.

* * *

Hiccup glared at the latest attempt at the sword he was making for Snotlout, no matter what he did it was always to thin and weak, it'd snap under the slightest pressure, but it needed to be more similar to a needle than a long sword, he ran a hand through his hair in irritation when Ruffnut and Fishlegs burst into the forge breathlessly.

"Whoa guys, where's the fire?" Hiccup joked tossing the mottled hunk of metal into the corner

"Hiccup, new metal, strong." Fishlegs breathed out.

"Take a second and explain." Hiccup calmed the boy with an open hand, trying to avoid getting to excited at 'new metal' and 'strong'.

"So, I was with Meatlug and talking to Ruffnut about weapons," Ruffnut gave a little wave and Fishlegs quickly continued "Meatlug was eating rocks with Iron in them, she got sick and vomited lava, when the lava dissipated it left this sheet of metal." Fishlegs held up the large sheet.

"How'd I miss that?" Hiccup questioned audibly

"We call it Gronkle Iron!" Ruffnut exclaimed

Hiccup took the sheet and inspected it, he placed it against the anvil and braced it before bringing the hammer down, at its thickness it should have snapped easily, the jarring impact shot up his arm and he dropped the hammer with a wince.

"Fish, how much of this can you get Meatlug to make?" Hiccup asked urgently

"Well, as long as we have the iron in a rock as much as she can eat." Fishlegs answered quickly.

"Good, I'll need a lot more of it." Hiccup's eyes flared with a new fire as he dropped the sheet into coal to begin melting it back down, he moved the bellows quickly.

* * *

Minutes turned to hours, the sun dipped towards the horizon as Ruffnut went about showing Fishlegs the different styles of hammer he could use, the boy experimented with each one, eventually stopping on a long handled spiked hammer, it seemed the most comfortable on him and he could use it with a shield or without depending on the situation.

Meatlug repeatedly spewed chunks of the metal as Hiccup asked for it, he glanced out of the forge at the pair of teens and wiped his brow with a sleeve, taking a quick note of Fishlegs weapon of choice as he continued to pound away at the metal relentlessly, the stronger metal cooled faster and was stronger, so he had to hit it faster and harder than he was used to.

It was well and truly night when he finished the last weapon, placing it on the counter with a long sigh, he glanced at the last design he had just enough Gronkle Iron left if he made no mistakes.

Hiccup took a long breath as he moved back to the coals and dropped the last of the metal into it, he worked the bellows quickly and moved to the leathers, cutting a few quick strips he laid them down and moved back to the metal, he moved back to the metal, he had made the meld for his design earlier that day when he had first arrived at the forge, the metal filled it barely as he began the process of cooling it into the correct shape before he moved it back to the anvil, and worked on curving the large chunk of metal correctly before, he used a chisel and hammer to correctly shape the finer edges, he finished with a loud exhale, he fell against the wall of his office and sank to the ground. His arms burned, his lungs hurt and his head pounded, but he was finished, he could complete the rest of the intricacies the next day.

He moved into the back room, his small office, he had gotten a bed placed in it recently, having fallen asleep on his desk more than enough to know that sleeping at the forge was not uncommon, he collapsed against the wood with a thud, he promised himself he go flying with Toothless when he woke up, but for now he needed to sleep.

* * *

 **A/N: What kind of Sword do you think Snotlout's Sword is going to be? What did Hiccup build himself? Find out next week! Not next week whenever I get around to the next chapter!**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you did drop a follow and feel free to check out my other stories and my poll if you are interested and I will see you guys in the next one, peace!**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: A number of people took stabs, (Pun very much intended.) At Snotlout's sword design, I will just let you read and find out and I am officially off the fence on the Lemon, this story is going to have one, however it will not be for a couple of chapters, so don't get excited or worried, depending on your feelings on them, with that onto the chapter!**

* * *

Something sticky lapped at Hiccups hand and the boy cracked an eye open and sighed, Toothless lifted the boys hand in his mouth and gave a light tug "Yes bud, we can go for a fly." Hiccup announced sitting up and yawning loudly, his back popping as he retrieved his helmet and belted on his armor, Toothless hopped from foot to foot excitedly as Hiccup quickly climbed his back, the sun was barely peaking the horizon, Hiccup took a long breath of the cold morning air before Toothless slammed into the air with a powerful beat of his wings.

It felt like a much longer stretch of time had passed since Hiccup had last flown with Toothless, with everything happening it was hard to just disappear for a few hours, Hiccup's trailed lazily over the ocean as he relaxed, wind in his face and Mildew on the cliff?

Hiccup frowned and kept Toothless high as he flew over the old man, pushing a wheelbarrow full of something towards the cliff, the glint of metal told him the contents and his eyes widened as he urged Toothless into a quick dive as Mildew pushed the stack of weapons of the cliff.

Hiccup reached forward and managed to get a hold of an axe before it hit the water, he glared at the top of the cliff quickly ascending and landing in front of Mildew.

"Ah, Master Hiccup what would you be doing out so early?" Mildew asked innocently.

"Weapon catching, apparently," Hiccup responded coldly flipping the axe in his hand "Do you honestly expect to get away with this Mildew, _war_ is coming and you just threw the entire armory off a cliff!"

"Why whatever do you mean?" Mildew asked innocently "I am merely out for a morning stroll, this old bones still enjoy the morning air around Berk."

Hiccup hopped on his foot before launching forward blade pressed against the old man's neck as his eyes narrowed, Toothless puncturing growl emanating from behind him "I _saw_ you Mildew."

"Heh, raising a weapon against and Elder without proof is a serious offense." Mildew chuckled warningly as he eyed Hiccup.

Hiccup's eyes turned to reflect the smirk on his face "Why whatever do you mean Mildew? I merely found a drunken old man who wandered too close to a cliff."

Mildew's eyes widened "There's only two people here Mildew, I could kill you and make up any story I want, so do you want to change that story of yours? Or are you going to become acquainted with the sharp rocks at the bottom of the drop behind you?" Hiccup asked darkly.

"You will not be able to keep the beasts in Berk forever Master Hiccup," Mildew growled as he moved passed the boy, after Hiccup allowed it that is "I can easily turn the Village against you."

Hiccup lifted a hand and clenched his fist, Toothless's maw glowed brilliantly as Mildew scurried out of the way "Be careful how you speak around beasts Mildew, they can hear you too." Hiccup warned simply as he looked down at the ocean, with that Berk was almost completely defenseless.

Hiccup sighed as he remounted Toothless, deciding to circle the island once more before landing, the town was in uproar as he landed and Toothless quickly moved to find Ghost.

* * *

"The armory is empty!" A villager shouted in panic.

"Gods above are we being punished? Does this timing mark the end of Berk?"

"Quiet down everyone," Stoick barked quickly, the village instantly stopped as the chief moved forward "We are looking into the disappearance of the weapons, with any luck they will be found and Alvin will not so easily finish us."

"Don't count on it," Hiccup strode from the crowd and tossed his father the axe he had caught "That's the only one I managed to save, Mildew tossed our weapons over the cliff!"

"An old man like me? Raided the entire armory on me arms and tossed it over a cliff?!" Mildew defended himself intelligently, Hiccup would give him that.

"Where's your cart Mildew?" Hiccup asked flatly

"Why I don't know Master Hiccup, I brought it to Gobber last night for repairs." Mildew shrugged.

"Aye he did, he couldn't have used the cart, it's wheel is still sitting in my forge." Gobber clarified.

Hiccup growled, of course the old man had used a different cart "Hm, Well it seems I've been bested, I can't win with only my word."

Stoick glanced at his son with a raised eyebrow "So, rather than that I'll just defend Berk myself."

"You defend a whole Village?!" Mildew laughed

"Did you forget who I am Mildew?" Hiccup glared at the old man so fiercely he abruptly silenced.

"I've held the woods east of this Village for months, I _tamed_ a Nightfury and I can protect my home from a group of Outcasts." Hiccup growled

Stoick smirked "With that until new weapons are made, I am going to order everyone to the cove, Gobber can work there and Hiccup will be able to use the space to create a better defense." Both Haddock's glared at Mildew as he slunk passed them.

"Hiccup, I have no doubt in your ability, but defending an entire village on your own is crazy." Stoick watched the boys reaction carefully.

"Well, I never actually said I'd be on my own," Hiccup grinned glancing at the group of teens standing at the back of the crowd calmly "Don't worry about us, Alvin won't even know what hit him."

Stoick chuckled as Hiccup moved to the group of teens "So, six against an army huh?" Astrid questioned

"Well, thirteen if you count the dragons and Ghost," Hiccup countered as he walked to the forge "Don't worry, I always have a plan."

"That's what I'm worried about." Astrid sighed as the boy disappeared into the forge.

The window opened and metal clanked together as he dropped it down, the teens walked over curiously Astrid picked up the small axe and inspected it "It's way to light to be useful." She dismissed, not noticing Hiccup's small smirk.

"It's a new metal Fishlegs and Ruffnut discovered," Hiccup explained "It's durable, more so than standard Iron, it's considerably lighter and _much_ stronger."

"We called it Gronkle Iron, since Meatlug pretty much threw it up." Ruffnut added calmly.

Astrid peered curiously at the female twin and picked up the axe that was practically a mirror image of her current one, the only difference being the new metal, Astrid set her current axe down and brought the new one down on it quickly.

With a metallic snap her old axes blade snapped in two and flipped into the air, Astrid's eyes widened in surprise as she lifted the new axe, Hiccup was right, it was _way_ lighter meaning she'd be able to throw it further, she twirled it around for a moment before resting it over her shoulder.

The other teens shuffled forward, eager to see what Hiccup had designed for them, Tuffnut moved forward first and Hiccup pulled a simply mace from the pile and Tuffnut lifted an eyebrow as Hiccup smirked, he hit a switch on the hilt and the head fell away on a long chain he then handed Tuffnut a small buckler, built more for parrying than attack and Tuffnut accepted it with a simple nod of his head.

Fishlegs moved forward second, eager to see what Hiccup could come up with in just a day, having only chosen his weapon of choice the day before he doubted it would be much more than standard.

Hiccup slid the hammer to the large boy, it was pretty much exactly the same as the one before, a longer handle so he could effectively use it with or without a shield, Hiccup slid a large shield over the table, it was huge looking more like a massive curved door of metal than an actual shield, Fishlegs eyed it in surprise "I don't think I can lift that."

"Just try." Hiccup ordered quickly and Fishlegs grimaced as he pulled the shield to him and laced his arm through the straps, surprisingly the shield felt almost weightless on his arm "The weapon I couldn't do much with, but I had a field day on the shield." Hiccup announced

Fishlegs noticed the small mechanisms spread around his arm, quick shifts would activate them but if he wanted the shield to remain as it was he simply had to hold it properly, which he could do with ease, so he began testing them.

The first button slammed two thick spikes into the ground effectively turning the shield into an actual wall, the second button folded the shield onto itself, making it an easy to handle small square and the third function folded it further, morphing it into a cylindrical armguard that fit Fishlegs forearm snugly.

The large boy grinned, despite telling Fishlegs he'd have to fight, Hiccup had set him up with a way to defend more easily than hurt, the thought calmed Fishlegs slightly.

Ruffnut moved to the counter and Hiccup slid a simple looking spear towards her, one end had a large pointed blade on it the other had a more standard spearhead, she frowned at the design before pulling it back and spinning it around her neck like she had attempted to do the day before with the training spear, the weapon was perfectly balanced for her, it didn't shift her centre and allowed her to have a more powerful array of slashes that at any point could become deadly thrusts, it was a deceptively simple design.

"I call it a glaive." Hiccup announced "I got the idea when you tried to slash me with a spearhead, the same premise as an axe with a spike, only in a spear for the added reach."

"Thanks." Ruffnut smirked as she moved towards Fishlegs "Alright you time to whip you into shape!"

Fishlegs paled slightly as the twin approached him.

Snotlout moved towards the table apprehensively as Hiccup placed a sword across the bench, the long thing blade looked as though it would do little to block anything, Snotlout had seen enough examples to assume this weapon had just as much strength as a long sword, Hiccup paused him before he picked it up and snapped a part of the cross guard down, the blade abruptly thickened similar to that of a great sword with flatter end.

"The metal folds to create a powerful thrusting weapon and widened to allow more defensive options with longer reach swings, I thought this would allow you to meld both your fathers and your teachers styles." Hiccup explained as he moved the sheath towards his cousin.

Snotlout smiled slightly as he picked it up "Thanks Hiccup, I know we don't get along all that well, but this is…awesome."

Hiccup grinned as he moved back into the shop, metal clattered around for a moment before he emerged from the shop, the metal covering on his forearm glinted, the red dragon coiled over it seemed to almost glow against the silver.

The shield itself was like a curved rectangle strapped over his arm, two pointed edges revealed the back of his glove allowing his wrist complete freedom of movement and it jutted passed his elbow allowing him to maneuver as if her weren't wearing it at all, he clicked a button on the inside and the shield snapped inwards with a click, effectively making only the outside of his armguard appear silver.

"Astrid, I'm going to need a favor." Hiccup called calmly, his tone more like militaristic calm than the usual nasally sarcasm she was used too.

"What is it Hiccup?" Astrid asked quickly.

"Ghost has the best chance of flying around in the day without being spotted, I'm going to set up the defenses as best we can, but we need to know if Alvin is coming." Hiccup explained as he unfolded a map on the ground.

"The island they were using is here," Hiccup pointed to the map calmly "If we assume that they are going to come from the opposite side of the island that would put their ships somewhere out here." He gestured to the ocean.

"Of course we can't just hope so we are going to have three separate lines of defense on each bay, the only areas they will be able to safely land, the group that gets attacked will signal using one of these," He handed a set of three cylindrical wooden tubes with small strings coming from them, the teens looked at the devices in confusion.

"Trader Johann told me these are called 'fireworks' apparently they make a loud bang and a colored explosion, Alvin won't know what they are meaning it's unlikely he'll thing it's a signal." Hiccup explained

"So I'm flying rounds to try and figure out if he's coming from one or more directions, but we are going to defend the main points just in case." Astrid noted.

"Exactly, I'll leave the specifics of the defense to each of you," Hiccup looked up quickly "Snotlout and Ruffnut, you two will be on the southern bay, it's the least likely to see a raid as it's in the wrong place for them to do any harm without at least a day long trek, but we can't rule it out." Hiccup explained

"Only one problem, Ruff and I have a two headed dragon." Tuffnut explained

"I'm aware, but Ruffnut needs to keep training Fishlegs in the down time we have, I can't afford to split them up and get someone killed, that's why Ruffnut and Fishlegs will be here, in the main harbor." Hiccup explained simply

The teens nodded in quick understanding, Astrid's eyes followed Hiccup's finger calmly, that only left the eastern cove, where Hiccup thought Alvin was most likely to land and the forest Hiccup had long since made his home, if there was one place Hiccup could do damage, it was in that forest.

"Astrid and I will watch the east, if you don't see a shot of dragon fire in return to your firework assumed we didn't see it and set traps to fall back over, split to each of the groups and warn us don't engage on your own." Hiccup ordered flatly.

"What if they split and come in from every bay at once?" Tuffnut asked simply

"If they do that they will spread very thin, it's unlikely but Outcasts aren't known for their overwhelming intelligence, if they decide to use that strategy you are free to engage at your own discretion." Hiccup explained as he got to his feet, Toothless arrived with Ghost a few meters behind.

"Hey bud, I need you to convince Ghost to let Astrid ride her." Hiccup cooed to Toothless, the large black dragon glanced at Ghost.

"You understand him to," Toothless addressed the female Nightfury flatly "Will you assist us?"

Ghost glanced at the male for a long second while she considered declining and telling them they were on their own, but she didn't much like the other human either, the enemy of my enemy and all that "As long as I get to eat someone I'll allow it."

Toothless warbled in amusement "I've heard human tastes horrible."

Ghost lifted an eyebrow before padding over to the blonde girl calmly, Astrid's blue eyes locked with Ghosts for a moment and Astrid lifted her hand slowly, Ghost's eyes narrowed at the appendage and she glanced at Toothless apprehensively, the male simply nudged his head forward in example "It's a bond, it signifies the trust between rider and dragon, you may believe it is master and beast but you are wrong, they trust us in the air and we trust them on the ground."

Ghost only held for a moment longer before pressing her snout to Astrid's hand, she might have been able to claim it was a moment of weakness, that she still didn't like humans, but it would be a lie, try as she might she could not summon animosity towards the young people in front of her, she shook herself quickly and Astrid quickly climbed onto her back, she braced as Astrid held a spine that was protruding from her back tightly.

Hiccup moved towards the girl and squeezed her hand lightly "You be safe up there, no heroics okay?" He didn't manage to keep the worry out of his tone.

Astrid smiled at him warmly "I've got the biggest badest girl right next to me," The girl announce petting Ghost's neck with a grin "We've got this."

Hiccup nodded quickly as Astrid took off "All right everyone, move out!" The teens who had to get across the island scattered to their dragons, Hiccup pulled his helmet back on and climbed back atop Toothless "I hope this all works bud." He whispered worriedly as they took to the sky.

* * *

 **A/N: I need to cut this chapter here, mostly because If I don't it'll end up being way too big to properly edit (Even though I edit lazily I don't need any more excuses.) The next chapter will be the deciding battle! Snotlout's main sword is a rapier, but I think a great sword kind of suits his character, Fishlegs I set up to be less of a fighter, making him practically a walking wall of metal seemed appropriate, Astrid's still got the signature axe and Ruffnut's weapon was kind of an improvised, I was originally going to make it a standard double bladed spear before I had the idea to make it a glaive and I think the glaive is a better fit for her in this fiction, Hiccup's shield is similar in appearance to an Uruk-hai's shield from LOTR, I liked the sort of streamlined design of their shields, obviously he'll have a few hidden surprises in it, but for now I am keeping the mystery.**

 **Glad everyone caught the Mulan reference, I mean it was a more obvious one, but still glad it wasn't received poorly.**

 **Replies!**

 **Midnight510: No, I haven't seen the latest RTTE season, I do plan to marathon them at some point, I have actually only recently finished Defenders of Berk, I am way behind, but I already had the idea to do Gronkle Iron this way because I have an idea with rock combinations that'll come in later, Rufflegs is the correct shorthand as far as I know, but I am sort of partial to that as a side pairing, a little undecided about how far I'm going to take it in this fiction though.**

 **A big thanks to everyone else that reviewed!**

 **Now my usual outro! If you enjoyed feel free to drop a follow and check out my poll and other stories if you are interested and I will see you in the next one, peace!**


	16. Chapter 16

Mildew glanced out of a large cave carefully as the grey Nightfury took off above him, flying out to sea before angling around the island slowly, he pushed his small boat off the beach, weaving between seas stacks carefully to avoid being spotted from the air, the plan required timing the girl would be above them within a half hour if that Nightfury matched Toothless.

His small boat clunked against a much larger boat and a ladder was lowered to him, he scrambled up it quickly and grinned.

"The dragon boy's back in the forest." Mildew announced calmly.

A wicked grin set across Alvin's face "Excellent."

* * *

Astrid glanced around herself, trying to make out anything over the ocean the spread around her, surely the Outcasts were coming, Mildew abandoning the weapons was just too coincidental, even if they had no way to prove the old man was working with them everything about the day just set her on edge, Ghost warbled and gestured with her head towards something and Astrid followed the dragons gaze.

Astrid's eyes widened, how did Outcast's ships get _there?!_ There was no way they knew how to navigate the sea stacks? A net flew towards he quickly and Ghost shredded it with a quick blast as Astrid pulled back into the air, not wanting to relive falling off a dragon again as she sped over the island, she didn't know when they had landed but they weren't using the bays which meant no one was in a position to stop them.

She was trying to remember where that cave exited, where would the Outcasts like appear? Unfortunately there were just too many possibilities to narrow it down at all, she landed with a loud thud in the centre of Berk and her head snapped around, looking for Ruffnut and Fishlegs.

Had the Outcasts already been here? Were Fishlegs and Ruffnut already gone?

"Astrid?" The blonde calmed as the voice made its way to her ears curiously.

"The Outcasts are already here, they landed on the beach near the stacks and are using a massive cave!" Astrid said urgently

"I know the cave you're talking about, it comes out in two major areas in the eastern forest and one a little closer to Berk." Fishlegs sounded quickly

"Wait that means." Ruffnut started slowly.

Astrid's eyes widened "Hiccup!" She darted back to Ghost and launched onto the dragons back, Ghost turned her nose to the sky for half a second before launching into the sky.

"What are we going to do?" Ruffnut asked Fishlegs, she didn't have a dragon, they wouldn't be much help if they ran.

"Meatlug can carry two, we'll go to the cave closer to Berk and set off the firework so Tuff and Snotlout come to us." Fishlegs plotted calmly as he whistled sharply, Meatlug flopped onto the ground heavily and the two teens climbed onto her back.

* * *

Hiccup frowned at the ocean in front of him, he should have been able to see something by now or Astrid should have shown up to tell him if she found nothing, there's been no fireworks, was Alvin planning on not attacking at all?

A twig snapped and Hiccup's head snapped around he jumped back narrowly evading an axe swing from a large Outcast, Hiccup darted over to Toothless he grabbed the firework and tossed into the air "Toothless fire!" The dragon complied lighting the firework up in the sky, the loud bang and the sudden influx of light cause the Outcasts nearest him to stagger, Hiccup slammed his faceplate back down and signaled for Toothless to take off as he bolted into the forest.

"Hah! The dragon boys on the run!" Alvin cackled as his men followed close behind.

Hiccup's surprise melted as he moved between the tree's, with the sun beginning to fall this part of the island was settling more into his territory, mist began rising from the forest floor and the wonder at how the Outcast's managed to get so close without any of them realizing faded, Hiccup glanced around the edge of the tree he was leaning against as the Outcasts spread out in front of him.

"I didn't think my warning could be misinterpreted Alvin." He called as he moved.

Alvin growled "Oh? And What warning would that be?"

"You won't leave this island alive." Hiccup warned as he drew his weapon calmly.

"Hah it's going to take more than one _boy_ to stop me." Alvin cackled loudly.

Hiccup launched forward blade glinting slightly as he brought it across an Outcasts chest before kicking off and disappearing into the brush, the man let out a shout and the soldiers around him moved to the source of the sound.

"You can't stop what you can't see Alvin." Hiccup growled darkly as he moved again.

The Outcast he rushed barely registered surprise as Hiccup spun passed him, blood spattered the ground as she shifted and ran along a small clearing, a sword swept over his head and he slid to his knees, slashing the leg of the person who attacked him, the Outcast fell to the ground and Hiccup spun to his feet and stabbed the soldier through the back of the head without breaking stride or slowing down.

"What are you blubbering idiots doing?! Stop spreading out and regroup, we are going all the way to Berk." The outcasts abruptly stopped searching for Hiccup and moved to Alvin's side forming a quick line as they advanced into the forest, Hiccup perched above them silently, he lifted his hand slowly and clenched his fist, Toothless spun in the air and let out a quick shot of fire, effectively forcing the men to dive out of the way as Hiccup practically pin dropped from his perch, the Outcast he landed on top of didn't have time to scream as Hiccup's blade squelched through his chest.

Hiccup's eyes narrowed as he got to his feet slowly, a crossbow bolt whistled towards him and his knife whipped around, the shot reflected into the air with a metallic chink, Hiccup lowered back slightly and launched forward, his blade slicing across a man's chest as he pivoted around a second stab and brought his knife forward slicing through the attackers neck.

A set of bolts whistled towards him and Hiccup spun, shield snapping out of his arm with a loud click, the bolts reflected of the metal and fell to the ground uselessly, Hiccup shifted his weight and cocked his arm back punching the air with the shield, two small fang like daggers launched from the sides and thudded against the chests of a pair of the crossbowmen who fell to the ground limply.

Hiccup braced against his shield as Alvin brought an axe down, the two locked glares for a moment "You can't kill us all without tiring, we will simply outlast you then Berk is ripe for the taking."

Hiccup lifted an eyebrow as a crossbow bolt flew over Alvin's shoulder, it slammed against Hiccup's helmet and the boy staggered, Alvin stepped forward into a powerful kick into Hiccups' chest, Hiccup flew backwards and slammed against a tree with a loud thud, his helmet hit the ground with a thud.

Hiccup spat blood from his mouth as he got to his feet and wiped at his lip, Alvin smirked and Hiccup looked at the blood smeared on his hand for a moment before his mouth split into a cold smirk, a low ruble started in his chest before it descended into loud hysterical laughter.

"You're going to take Berk _you?!"_ He got out between laughs "You have no idea how outmatched you are do you?!"

An outcast let out a cry and charged towards Hiccup, the men's battle cry quickly turned into a gurgling fit as Hiccup seemed to lazily sway to the side before slamming the points of his shield into the man's throat, he pulled the shield back, revealing a long blade protruding from above his wrist "Do you honestly think I lead you here without a plan?!"

Hiccup's laughter didn't cease, but another sound was hidden behind it, Alvin frowned as Hiccup's laughter cut off "Allow me to introduce the rest of the dragon riders."

"Stop just starting at him, _end him_!" Alvin bellowed angrily, a line of crossbows took aim at Hiccup and fired before something larger landed with a thud in front of him, the wall off metal deflected the bolts and Hiccup sagged against the tree and held his ribs with a grimace "Took you long enough." He grunted.

"You know my penchant for theatrical timing," Fishlegs joked, a thick smog of green settled above the Outcasts line before it ignited, sending the men scattering in every direction, Alvin glared at the group of dragon riders as Snotlout dropped from Hookfang and moved next to Fishlegs, Fishlegs kept the large shield open and moved in between Hiccup and the Outcasts the few men who managed to collect themselves quickly rushed at Snotlout who drew his sword calmly, he rotated it slightly in front of himself as he widened his stance before drawing back the blade show forward in a quick flash of metal, Snotlout drew back and slapped a sword away before darting forward and reversing his grip, he drove the sword back and spun forward pulling the blade free and deflecting a blow into the air before slashing at the last opponent diagonally.

Tuffnut and Ruffnut were the next ones to join the battlefield, leaving Barf and Belch to do as they pleased as they landed lightly beside Hiccup and the other two teens, Hiccup groaned as he pushed himself to his feet, his ribs sounding their disagreement to his movement.

"Hiccup, I think you should take it easy." Fishlegs noted worriedly

"Can't afford to, they aren't retreating yet." Hiccup growled through his teeth as he winced, holding onto his knife was difficult pain clouded every movement he made, he glanced down at his side and realized a wide gash had opened up, he wasn't sure how he got it at all.

"Oh, they'll be retreating alright." Tuffnut laughed as he moved forward "Shall we dear sister?" He offered his hand as if he were inviting her to a dance, Ruffnut smirked and curtsied sarcastically as she took his hand.

"I thought you'd never ask dear brother!" She announced sarcastically the pair shifted slightly before darting forward, Hiccup tilted his head slightly as Ruffnut ducked, Tuffnut's mace flew over her head and Tuffnut jumped as Ruffnut's blade flew underneath him and slashed upwards, the pair covering each other's weaknesses and forcing strengths.

"Oh, I'm not getting outdone by those two," Snotlout shouted heartily as he rushed forward, sword twisting into a great sword he grabbed the handle and brought it across wide.

Fishlegs glanced at Hiccup one more time before he was forced to fight himself, a few Outcasts still after Hiccup, the shield snapped down into it's easier to handle for and Fishlegs braced as the pair attacked him, the axe bearing down on the shield heavily, Fishlegs spun the hammer in his hand and brought it across, slamming one man backwards and forcing the second off with a harsh shove Hiccup ignored his body's protests and darted forward, forcing pain out of his mind as his eyes narrowed on Alvin dangerously.

The boys knife dragged along the ground as he moved forward, a couple of Outcasts put themselves in the way and Hiccup slid and slowed slightly before moving forward, blade extending from his shield with a click, he moved into a quick punch and it launched forward catching the first man by surprise as it embedded in his chest, Hiccup pulled back and the blade was dragged back to its spot by a long chain.

The second Outcasts attack bounced off his shield and he cut the man down before continuing towards Alvin, a sword cut towards him and Hiccup dodged back, Alvin brandished his axe as Savage moved to Hiccups right, Hiccup eyed the pair for a moment before they rushed him, Hiccup crouched low before jumping into the air, flipping over quickly he slashed out, Alvin blocked and Savage took a quick step back before rushing forward again.

Hiccup bared his teeth as he forced the pain in his side out of his mind, as Savages sword grated along his shield he stepped up and pushed the man away before spinning forward and slamming a kick into Savage's side, Alvin through his axe and Hiccup's head snapped back as the blade graze against the top of his head taking a few strands of hair with it, Hiccup rotated and blocked Savages stab as Alvin brought a sword down, Hiccup dropped onto his knee as he glared at the two opponents, one leaning on his shield the other on his sword.

Hiccup growled and drove up, forcing the two men back and snapping around, taking Savage's leg out from under him and launching at Alvin, Alvin brought his sword up and blocked Hiccups as the boy leaned almost his entire body weight against the larger man. Alvin smirked as his fist cocked back and Hiccup rotated down, leg flying down and slamming into Alvin's nose, a sickening crunch echoed out of the blow and Hiccup landed with a light thud and staggered slightly, his side screamed at him before a wooden thunk echoed around in his ear.

Hiccup's head snapped down to see Savage's sword embedded half an inch into his stump, the realization that he'd would have lost a leg popped up in the back of his mind but he ignored it as he stepped around and slammed his foot down, Savage rolled out of the way of the kick.

Alvin and Savage eyed Hiccup carefully, the boy titled his head slightly and his neck cracked loudly before he rushed forward, Alvin's smile seemed to widen and Hiccup heard a click and his eyes widened before a sharp pain screamed from his right side, he glanced down and staggered, _that_ was definitely not supposed to be there, a thick bolt of wood protruded from his side and his vision blurred.

Alvin and Savage advanced towards him quickly and Hiccup barely managed to make his arms move in time to block the relentless stream of strikes aimed at him, he couldn't buy enough time to signal Toothless, he didn't know where Astrid was, there was still an entire line between him and the other teens, his back came in contact with something and his mind vaguely arrived at the conclusion he had nowhere left to run.

His vision was fading in an out, he felt his grip on his knife slacken and he gritted his teeth and growled, adrenaline giving him enough strength to lift the blade up, he didn't see the small crack in the centre so when it shattered in front of him his expression mirrored his surprise, the cut that opened on his chest was shallow, barley more than stinging scratch, he shoved his shield forward and it slammed against Alvin's chest, forcing the man a step back.

Alvin grunted but was otherwise undeterred by the blow, Hiccup could have sword he saw something blue in the sky, but he dismissed the thought, stars weren't blue, neither was the moon, something exploded in front of him and he was showered in dirt, he heard Alvin shout something that sounded a lot like retreat, but the voices were getting further and further away, he staggered forward a few steps, he heard a shriek that sounded a lot like Toothless before he fell forward, he hit something, he wasn't sure what it was, but it's softness was familiar he remembered the smell but couldn't place it, whatever it was it was warm, his vision finally faded out and he slumped, the last thing he recognized was his name being screamed, who was screaming it he wasn't sure, he didn't know why they sounded so worried either, all he could think about was the warmth he was leaning against as he fell into the void of unconsciousness.

* * *

Astrid's glanced at the ground around her, she had just left Ruff and Fishlegs in the village square when the sound of something being launched met her ears, Ghost rolled to the side to avoid the large rock and Astrid's head snapped to the ground catapults? They had been here long enough to set them up?!

She angled Ghost down and the pair dropped below the tree's "Girl, you do your thing, I'm going to make a little noise." Astrid whispered as she dropped onto a thick branch, Ghost almost grinned as he took to the sky, Astrid scrambled down the tree quickly, if she could clear the sky the others could get to Hiccup quicker, the faster they all got together the faster they could force the Outcasts off of Berk.

The moment her feet touched the ground she was forced to move as a crossbow shot flew at her, she tossed her axe as she darted to her feet, the trained accuracy she had honed over many years kicked in and the axe thudded against the Outcasts chest, she darted forward wrenching the axe free of the corpse as she darted forward, her eyes scanned the sky as Ghost turned around a rock and dived, a powerful blast showered the clearing around Astrid with dust as the first catapult was annihilated.

Astrid rushed through the dust cloud quickly, her axe slicing through any Outcast that spotted her, she didn't have time to think about much as she moved, don't get killed, dodge, block, dive, roll, slash, her mind revolved in an endless circle, another blast registered in her head, two catapults down, she wasn't sure how many men she'd killed, she shifted and jumped out of the way, her axe thudded against a shield and a hand closed around her neck and lifted her into the air, she gritted her teeth her feet pressed against the man's chest as he began to squeeze, Astrid pulled her dagger from her boot and slashed at his hand he dropped her and she coughed once and drew a quick breath before she darted forward, the small knife dragged across his throat and she yanked the axe free of his shield before tossing the dagger the iron glinted in a single flash as it moved towards another man, it thudded against his chest as he staggered and let out a sharp cry of pain before Astrid finished him off.

Another blast shook the ground and the final catapult splintered around her.

"Leave the girl! We've bought enough time, the dragon boys already trapped!" The Outcasts shouted loudly, trying to reach their own as they ran from her, Ghost landed beside her with a loud thud and Astrid's eyes widened as he body numbed, Hiccup! Hiccup was trapped?!

She dived onto Ghosts back and urged the dragon into the sky, the dove and hovered above the tree tops like a sleek grey knife, cutting through the air, the tree's groaned underneath them as their speed pulled at their branches.

Night had completely fallen when she arrived, even at their speed it had apparently taken much longer to get rid of those catapults than she thought, the rest of the teens had already arrived and were attempting to fight through a line of Outcasts while Hiccup fought off Savage and Alvin.

Astrid's eyes widened as Hiccup moved, it was clear to her he was injured, his movements were sluggish and he left way too many openings, he managed to get himself some room and attempted to recollect himself before he moved to attack. From her vantage point she could see the trap, the moment Hiccup moved forward a crossbow belt flew from the trees, even if he knew it was coming it would have been difficult to avoid, it embedded into his side and Astrid growled as she moved Ghost into a dive before another net flew out of the trees, followed closely by a catapult round, they blasted the net and rolled out of the way of the rock before blowing the catapult to pieces, Ghost pulled upwards into a loop before dropping down, Toothless whistled passed them and blew a large second of forest apart, clearly taking out what they were using to fire nets at them.

Astrid lowered against Ghost's back as the dragon's fire hummed in its throat, the shot blew dirt into the air and forced Alvin and Savage back, Toothless blew another large whole in Alvin's forces and Ghost landed, Astrid demounted and darted towards Hiccups as he toppled forward his head landed against her shoulder limply.

Ghost and Toothless snarled angrily at Alvin and the man backed away quickly "Retreat!"

Astrid didn't even here the order from the Outcasts as she held Hiccup tightly before bringing her hands to where she could see them in the burning forest, blood coated them thickly, she could feel more of it seeping into her clothing as she shook Hiccup lightly "Hiccup!"

He let a breath that almost sounded like a chuckle as he grew heavier against her chest "HICCUP! GODS, NO HICCUP!" She screamed as he fell against her completely.

His breathing had stopped, she couldn't feel his heartbeat against her.

"DON'T DIE HICCUP!" Astrid screamed "GODS YOU HAD BETTER NOT TAKE HIM!"

* * *

 **A/N: Oh Cliffhanger time! I think I've let you guys safely not worry about things long enough, I'm not even a little bit ashamed of this, I hope it wasn't predictable at the very least and I fully expect an onslaught for this chapter, regardless I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you did, feel free to check out my other stories and the poll on my profile if you're interested and I will see you next time, peace!**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: *Saunters into the room manically cackling* Well, hello there! I felt as a writer it was only necessary that I remind you that in this world I am a fricken god and I can at any point kill anybody even the main character! (Of course this is a joke please don't take it seriously.) So moving forward I can say that I will NOT be adapting RTTE into this story, solely because it is as of yet, unfinished, I don't want to attempt to alter it before I know the entire story, so after Defender's of Berk I will be doing HTTYD2 and then this story will complete, I put this fiction at around 30 chapters but depending on how much I cover per chapter it might be less or more that'll be as I go thing, but I'll stop my rambling now and let you move into the story!**

* * *

Hiccup felt like he was slowly sinking, his entire body floated weightlessly down until his back fell against something firm and he stopped, bits and pieces floated around the edge of his memory, the Outcasts, the fight, the other teenagers…Astrid screaming, he sat up abruptly and looked around, nothing, it was just an expansive swirling mass of smoky white.

"Yo," His head snapped to the voice and his eyes widened, he was looking at himself, well his armor at least, face mask down and eyes narrowed like he was on edge "Me? Hiccup? How do you talk to yourself these days?" The armored him chuckled to himself and gave him a quick mock salute.

Hiccup exhaled for a moment before he spoke "You're me?" He gestured between them calmly.

"How rude, you forget who watched your back all those years in the forest?" The boy in the suit placed his hand over his heart in mock hurt.

With that it clicked, he was looking at what he could assume was his mental image of what his out of control, relying solely on instinct self looked like, it was more humorous than he expected.

"Your thinking I've retained your sarcasm huh?" The suit st down with a laugh "Well, cracking jokes in the face of danger is a good way to seem unafraid."

"So, I'm dead?" Hiccup asked slowly

"Well, you're not dead yet, the rest sort of depends on the people outside you can't much help yourself at the moment," The suit explained, flopping onto his back with a thud and letting out a sigh "But still man, couldn't you use me just a little more often these days, my legs are getting stiff."

"Legs?" Hiccup asked glancing at his own feet and realizing his peg-leg was missing, he frowned.

"Were in your head remember, not a lot of people make themselves handicapped in their imaginations!" The boy quipped

Hiccup crossed his legs and sat down and the pair sat in silence.

"You're…not what I expected." Hiccup voiced slowly

"Hah, what did you think I'd be coated in blood telling you to wake up so I could kill something?" The suited boy laughed "I'm still you, you know."

"I get it but I mean," Hiccup glanced at the other boys eyes and gestured towards him "Your still all this."

"Aye, all this is what I am," The suit gestured to himself with a chuckle "I'm unnecessary now."

"What's that mean?" Hiccup asked as the suit climbed to his feet slowly.

"You haven't brought me out in a while," The suit sighed "I'm not stupid, you don't need me anymore."

"That's not true!" Hiccup exclaimed rising to his feet "I mean, I'm a good fighter but you _,_ you're a _great_ fighter!"

"We are the same person," The armor countered blankly "Think back, this whole Outcasts business I've come out once, when Astrid was hurt, you haven't used me sense, not to scare Mildew, not to combat the Outcasts or Alvin and Savage, face it Hiccup, you don't need me anymore."

Hiccup's arguments died in his throat and he averted his gaze to the ground "But me and you, it was us against the world for a long time."

"Hey, I said you don't need me anymore, don't act like I'm dying!" The armor snapped.

"Huh?" Hiccup hummed questioningly.

"For a smart person you're an idiot huh?" The armor blanked

"Hey, what happened to 'were the same person' crap from before." Hiccup countered

"Yeah, I guess this is pretty much the pot calling the kettle black," The armor sighed "I was only ever there to watch your back in the forest."

Hiccup tilted his head still not fully grasping what he was saying.

"Look, you don't need _me_ to watch your back anymore! You've got friends, family, your gonna get married in the future who do you think watches your back now huh? Me or her?!" The armor snapped before placing a hand where the bridge of his nose would be and squeezing lightly.

"I'm not dying, I'm just…unnecessary now." The armor titled it's head, eyes shifted and softened, he could tell the smile he was using behind that mask.

Hiccup remained still for a moment before he smirked "I guess you're right, it was a good run, it was really fun."

"Aye, that it was." The armor laughed as he held out his hand.

Hiccup clasped it in a firm grip "Thanks."

The armor nodded as it began to break, small holes of white appearing over its surface, the gentle smile remained on its eyes the whole time and Hiccup slumped to the ground and looked around, the expanse of white just went on forever 'The rest depends on the outside huh?' He recounted to himself as he laid down and crossed his arms behind his head "Well Astrid, sorry for leaving everything to you."

* * *

Astrid's head darted from the tree tops in front of her to the boy behind her, she couldn't see his breathing and couldn't remember a heartbeat, she shook her head violently as she urged Ghost to go faster as they landed with a loud thud in the cove.

"Gothi!" Astrid shouted in panic as she clambered off of Ghost and attempted to pull Hiccup down, his weight shifted onto her and they fell in a pile, she rolled him over as the village walked over to investigate, Gothi shoved through the crowd followed by Stoick, on seeing his son on the ground he ran over as Gothi moved to Hiccup's side.

"What happened?!" Stoick demanded

"I he, we, the Outcasts got into the caves underground and I was going to help but there were catapults and he had to fight Alvin and Savage alone! Someone helped them!" Astrid roared in panic before her eyes widened.

"Where's Mildew?" Astrid growled

"No one's seen him since yesterday." Stoick replied, lips pursed in a flat line as his eyes glowed with unbridled fury.

"Mildew is a traitor!" Stoick shouted as he got to his feet "Everything that has happened in Berk over the last two days is his doing, I want that old man shown no mercy if he is found."

Astrid glanced at the village and then to Hiccup's pale face and her stomach clenched tightly, Gothi inspected the boy closely listening for breath and attempted to feel a heartbeat, Gothi glared at the armor in irritation before he pulled a small dagger from her waist and cut the leather away, she tossed the chest piece a small distance from her and placed her ear to his chest, a small smile of relief settled on her face.

It was slow and weak, but it was there, his breath was shallow and almost non-existent but it was there.

"Get back to Berk, go and assist the other Dragon Riders, we owe them our lives!" Stoick barked furiously

Astrid saw Gothi's small gentle smile and she sank to her knees in a pile, relief knocking the air out of her as Gothi rummaged through her pouch, quick, trained hands moved around Hiccup's torso, closing the gashes on his side on his chest, the bolt was removed and the area was sterilized before being wrapped, Astrid help Hiccup's hand so tightly Stoick was afraid she might break the bones in the boys hand, not that he'd say anything about it, her eyes fixed worriedly on his face, it was pale and deathly still by no means was he out of the woods yet.

Gothi finished quickly and Gobber walked over slowly, collecting himself enough to translate the woman's scrawling "She says she's done everything she can, moving him again would be dangerous so the girl should stay with him."

Stoick glared at the man angrily "Stoick, I know you want to be here too, everyone does, but the village will need a chief."

Stoick's glare softened on his friend slightly and he sighed and raked a hand through his hair "Your right Gobber, Gothi thank you, just knowing he has a chance is a great relief."

Gothi inclined her head as she wrote something else in the ground.

"I believe he will recover he has more strength that we know." Gobber translated with a small smile.

Astrid heard the words chance and strength but ignored them as he grip tightened even more on his hand, the village eventually left, Stoick followed and Astrid felt the bite of the nights cold begin to shift, the cold morning air was considerably less harsh than it was at night, but she shivered all the same, her clothing was still coated in blood and it had frozen against her chest, she ignored it and remained unmoving.

When Hiccup shivered slightly she snapped up, he had _moved_ even if it was an unconscious twitch it was movement, she had yet to believe he was even still alive for the fear of hope swelling in her chest, that little movement created more than she cared to admit, she finally moved letting go of his hand and running to the emergency stocks, he retrieved as many furs as she could carry and draped them over him carefully, something bumped against her back and her eyes widened in surprise when Ghost curled a large grey wing over them, providing a small shield against the cold as Astrid wrapped the remaining fur over her shoulders and pulled her knee's to her chest, her chin rested on them and her hand squeezed Hiccup's gently, praying he'd squeeze back.

He didn't and she sniffed, she gritted her teeth and wiped at her itchy eyes in irritation, she was still a Hofferson, there was _no_ way she'd cry _now_! Hiccup was alive, his heart was beating and he was breathing! She would. _not. cry._

Despite her mental protests a sob escaped her throat and tears began sliding down her face, the stress of everything finally getting to her, Ghost didn't move, just laid her head down and allowed the humans the little privacy they gained under her wing, Toothless landed near her later in the day followed by the girls Nadder.

"I'm sorry I burrowed something of yours without permission." Ghost bowed her head slightly to the Nadder.

Stormfly titled her head in amusement "A rider is not property Ghost, I merely trust the girl, as she grows and trusts other dragons I may decide to move on, we are not slaves to them and they are not to us."

Ghost nodded her head slowly in understanding.

Toothless remained silent, but he didn't seem outwardly depressed or effected.

"You seem calm, your rider is playing with death as we speak." Ghost voiced bitterly.

"My rider is not weak," Toothless replied strongly "I trust him and I will trust him to pull through this, his soul is that of a dragon he won't let something like this stop him."

Ghost was taken aback, the blind faith the pair had in each other sparked jealously in her core and she let out a growl "I am tired, I am going to rest so try to remain quiet."

Toothless smirked knowingly "As you wish, Milady."

Astrid wasn't sure when she had fallen asleep, her hair felt matted to her head by moisture, her cheeks felt stiff she rubbed at them and realized she must have fallen asleep while she was still crying, she shivered and pulled the fur around her shoulders tighter, although the frozen blood covering her torso made it difficult to warm.

Hiccup hadn't moved and she grimaced as she gave his hand another experimental squeeze, she could have sworn she felt his hand twitch against hers and she sighed in slight relief, she didn't understand how something so miniscule could bring her so much relief at all.

Astrid hummed a slow tune, she didn't remember where she'd heard it, but images of Stoick and a woman she could only assume was Hiccup's mother flashed through her mind, they were singing it heartily in the great hall, she remembered it as their wedding song and she rubbed at Hiccup's hair slowly in realization, _they_ were going to get married someday in the nearer future, would Hiccup write her a song? Should she write one for him? How would their relationship change from now?

Astrid began experimentally.

 _I'd heard girls say he's a handsome one,_

 _I dare say I ignored them,_

 _He has eyes of emerald green,_

 _I dare say I ignored them,_

She smirked, at least it matched the tune she had in her head, she didn't count herself among the best of singers, but she still wondered if Hiccup would sing a song with her, would he smile at her again? Or would he laugh and make some kind of joke about her voice? It was traditional that men would start the songs and the wives would join, most of the time the songs were just made up on the spot and lyrics made little to no sense, what would Hiccup sing about her? Would he sing at all?

She chuckled at the idea of him bent at the knee attempting to serenade her, arms spread wide with the slight red of embarrassment he always wore on his cheeks when he thought people would judge him harshly.

"Hey, I love you a lot," She barked at him, her voice wavering slightly as she spoke "You hear me in there? You had better wake up, don't think you'll get away from me by just dying."

The idea of fighting through hordes of demons to rescue Hiccup subdued her restlessness slightly and her chin settled back onto her knees as she held his hand tightly.

* * *

Hiccup sighed as he walked, he found everything irritating, he felt like he was missing something really important and it pissed him off, the endless expanse of swirling white pissed him off, just _everything_ pissed him off, he let out a growl and felt his foot catch something and his eyes widened as he toppled forward and thudded against…wood?

An eye cracked open slowly, he was laying face first on a wooden floor? Wasn't he just walking through a huge expanse of nothing? He couldn't remember, what was he doing? He licked at his lips slowly and took a deep breath as he got to his feet, that's right he was going to see Astrid.

His face twisted into a small smile as he looked at whatever his feet had caught, it was a small wooden dragon, he titled his head, why did that seem so familiar? He questioned as he pushed the door to his home open, he could smell something roasting over the fire, his mouth watered slightly at the smell of mutton as he realized how hungry he was when his stomach voiced it's want of the food.

"And the triumphant chief returns." He would recognize that voice anywhere, although he felt like it sounded older, less girly almost, he shook the thought away of course they didn't sound like children they were already passed twenty.

He turned to the girl with a wide smile "Were you expecting someone else?" He purred as he walked towards her, he felt like something was missing from the clunk of his step but quickly dismissed it.

Astrid had a calculating look on her face as she rubbed at her chin playfully, of course the look disappeared when he pulled her into him by the waist and claimed her lips quickly, she titled her head, was he always this much taller than her? She pressed against him lightly as he deepened the kiss, tongue probing carefully at her bottom lip, her mouth parted and they battled for a moment as Hiccup gave her behind a quick squeeze, causing her start and moan slightly into his kiss.

"Ew!" A pair of Young voices sounded their displeasure from behind Hiccup and he pulled back with a wide grin, leaving Astrid to quickly collect herself as he turned to the pair of children, the girl slightly older, had brown russet hair like his, unruly in the same way, her eyes matched the blue of her mothers, as did the small axe on her belt, her face softened as she bounded forward and thudded into Hiccup's chest, followed by another smaller boy.

Unlike the girl, the boy inherited his mothers blonde hair and his green eyes, he had a penchant for going off on his own to hunt trolls, amongst other things Hiccup did as a child.

"Valla, Haro," Hiccup sounded happily "I missed you two little cretins!"

"That's rude dad," Valla laughed into his chest "Haro's the only cretin."

The boy pulled back, looking aghast, searching his father's face as Hiccup pretended to look calculating "I don't know, I think you both have all the qualifications to be cretins."

"Right that's enough out of you two, lunch time table, now," Astrid clapped her hands sternly and the two children darted to their seats and Hiccup moved across from them as Astrid placed plates in front of them "You're eating too?"

Hiccup frowned, he felt like there was something he was supposed to do, the feeling brought him irritation and he couldn't explained why.

"Yeah dad, You can't just sit in a dream you know." Valla sounded across from him.

Images floated through Hiccup's mind again, the Outcasts attack, the crossbow bolt, Astrid.

* * *

He was staring at a leathery grey roof, he frowned, he didn't recognize it, the bite of cold he felt on his fingers however he recognized as Berk's late air, based on the numbness he could safely say it was around sunset, although he had no idea how many days he had been asleep, his body still hurt so he decided against moving for now.

Something squeezed gently on his hand and he tilted his head enough, Astrid stared at him absently, it was like she was thinking about something far off, she didn't even register he was looking at her as she squeezed his hand again, she was humming to herself, a familiar song and he smiled gently and relaxed slightly, he looked at her face for a few moments, her eyes were red and puffy, she could see streaks on her cheeks, she was clearly crying, her usual blue shirt was died red with blood, _his_ blood, he added mentally a fur was lazily draped over her shoulders and the leathery roof was Ghost's one extended wing.

 _I'd heard girls say he's a handsome one,_

 _I dare say I ignored them,_

 _He has eyes of emerald green,_

 _I dare say I ignored them._

Astrid's voice reached his ears, singing calmly to the song she had been humming before hand, his eyes widened in the realization it was meant to be a wedding song.

 _I'd heard men say, she's got hair of gold._

 _I dare say I ignored them,_

 _She has eyes of ocean blue,_

 _I dare say I ignored them._

Hiccup's voice was raspy, Astrid's squeeze was a little tighter this time and he squeezed back, her eyes widened as she rocked back slightly, he smiled warmly at her before he continued

 _I met the girl they spoke about,_

 _And I dare I've completely fallen,_

Astrid's breath hitched in her throat, Hiccup was just going with whatever words floated into his head, he hoped it made sense and he hoped he didn't sound stupid.

 _I'd gladly sail on savage seas_

 _and brave the gates of Hel itself,_

 _Just to see the girl they spoke of,_

At this point it was Astrid's turn so he faded off and began humming the tune slowly.

Astrid smiled widely and bit back a sob as she took a moment to think before continuing.

 _I met the boy they spoke about_

 _And I dare I've completely fallen,_

She swayed slightly to the tune as she continued.

 _I have no need for mighty deeds_

 _I would not allow you near Hel,_

 _I only want the boy they spoke of,_

Hiccup's humming was replaced by Astrid's as he picked up the song again, this time he had a little more time to think, he recalled a few of the words his father had used and altered them slightly to suit him.

 _I'd bring her treasures great and small_

 _I'd even sing her poetry_

 _Just to see the girl they spoke of_

Astrid let out a chuckle as Hiccup picked up the tune again, the tempo beginning to change towards the end of the song.

 _I have no need for treasures all_

 _I care not for your poetry,_

 _I only want the boy they spoke of,_

Hiccup's foot tapped involuntarily to a beat that didn't exist as he took the song for the last of his verse.

 _I'm in love with the girl they spoke of_

 _I don't know how to say it_

 _So fair maiden please honor me_

 _With just your hand_

 _And just your heart_

 _So fair maiden please honor me_

 _With your hand in marriage._

In another time Astrid may have scoffed, but as Hiccup continued humming the tune a small tear slid from her face and she struggled with the incredible warmth and happiness his words brought her.

 _I'm in love with the boy they spoke of,_

 _I know how you could say it,_

 _So kind boy with heart of gold,_

 _take my hand and hold it close_

 _and hear my heart without fear_

 _So kind boy with heart of gold_

 _I'll gladly marry you._

Her voice faded slightly and the tempo of the song quickened as they reached the final part, the only part of the song the pair sang together, traditionally if the woman didn't return this part of the song it meant rejection, but neither of them had any idea what they were supposed to say, only the verse Stoick had once sung to Hiccup's mother remained in her head, fortunately Hiccup seemed to have the same idea.

 _No Scorching sun or freezing cold,_

 _Would stop me on my journey,_

 _Nothing can stop me from joining you_

 _To love and kiss, to sweetly hold_

 _For dancing and for dreaming_

 _For all life's sorrows and delights,_

 _I'll keep your love inside me_

 _I'll swim and sail on savage seas_

 _With ne'er a fear of drowning_

 _And gladly ride the waves of life,_

 _If you will marry me!_

They fell into a silence as Astrid leaned forward, Hiccup's hand moved gently across her cheek, wiping a tear with his thumb as his lips met hers, his body lit on fire and he sighed into the warmth.

Hiccup was alive, they were going to get married, Hiccup was alive, Astrid's head repeated the same two lines over and over again as they pulled back, the heat of his touch lingered on her cheek and spread around her body.

Hiccup smiled warmly "Sorry Astrid, I made you worry."

Astrid smiled brightly "You most certainly did," Her voice cracked slightly and she swallowed before she continued "But I wouldn't let you get away from me that easily."

Hiccup chuckled "Of course milady."

The two sat in silence, Hiccup's dream unforgotten as he stared at Ghost's wing, the dragon seemed to sense the lift in the mood and her wing was retracted over her back, revealing the stars of the night sky above Berk, Hiccup sighed contentedly as something black obscured his vision.

"Hey bud, did I worry you too?" Hiccup asked with a chuckle

Toothless shook his head quickly and dragged his tongue over Hiccup's form once before sauntering off, Hiccup grimaced at the layer of slime that coated him and Astrid chuckled into the back of her hand before the teens stomachs decided to sing the songs of their people.

"So, dinner?" Astrid offered

"Please." Hiccup nodded gratefully.

A fire was lit with the help of Ghost and fish was left to roast while Astrid held prop Hiccup into a seated position and inspected his bandages "Astrid, you need to change clothes, you'll freeze if you stay in those."

"I know, I know! I just didn't want to leave you here, I'll go see if there's something I can change into." Astrid waved as she got to her feet and darted around the pile of crates, searching inside them quickly, she seemed to find what she was looking for and now she was looking around with a calculating look on her face.

"What is her problem now?" Ghost asked in confusion

"Human's can't change those skins in front of their mates for some reason." Toothless voiced as he cocked his head to the side "Something about honor and virtue."

Ghost snorted "Silly creatures." Even as she said it she wandered over and sat on her hind legs, much like Toothless had done when Hiccup first fed him and spread a wing, completely obscuring Astrid from view, he heard the girl thank the dragon and Hiccup scratched the back of his head and tried not to think about what was behind the dragons wing as he turned the fish slowly.

A few moments later Astrid joined him, the clothing she wore was a little baggy clearly not made for her, but it looked warm, the hood drawn up suited her in his opinion as she blew air into her hands and rubbed them before hovering them over the fire.

Hiccup glanced up at the stars for a few seconds.

"Astrid?" He started slowly

"Yes Hiccup?" Astrid asked glancing around at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I love you." Hiccup smiled warmly and tilted his head calmly as he spoke.

Astrid's eyes widened and her cheeks colored as he glanced at the fire for a minute, her mouth opened and closed a few times before her voice finally worked "I love you too."

* * *

 **A/N: So, the song was actually written by me a while ago, I've been working on it since I started the story, the tradition for it I did make up but I think it suits the story, obviously I modeled it after Stoick's and Valka's, I also hinted a little at what the future of my Hiccstrid will be as we conclude the first incursion with the Outcasts! I hope you all enjoyed, if you're interested check out my other stories and as always I'll see you guys next time, peace!**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Hello! Where have I been? Well in the chronological order of fuckery that has been my life in the past month or so, I went over to a new fandom and started a fiction, finished that fic, started a new fic, got sick, got better, got fabulously rejected, updated my other HTTYD story, got sick again and then returned to this one…so uh, life's been interesting!**

 **With that though, I can say I am eager to get back into the swing of updating as usual, keep in mind I'm still working so the updates will likely fall on my days off cause that's when I have the most time, that being said I want to get more chapters out relatively quickly so prepare yourselves!**

* * *

Hiccup was finally back on his feet, three days after the fight and another day of Astrid forcibly keeping him pinned to the ground so he could rest and she deemed him fit to stand up and walk to the lake to get a drink of water for himself.

"I'm telling you I feel fine," Hiccup complained as Astrid inspected his bandages and watched his face intently for any signs of discomfort, other than his annoyance at being coddled "I feel like I could take on a Thunderdrum in a shouting contest and win."

A small smile played out on Astrid's face at the image, before she shook her head lightly and her eyes focused on him "You almost died, there is no way your fine after a day of rest!"

"I said I _feel_ fine," Hiccup countered "I'm still beat up, but we can make our way back towards the village now."

"No, we are staying here until you heal properly." Astrid nodded confidently, part of her wanted to go home as well, but a larger part wanted to stay in the little cove with Hiccup where they were alone.

"As much as I love sitting around and snuggling with you," Hiccup chuckled as if reading her mind "I want to sleep in my bed or maybe we could go back to Gothi's hut."

Astrid colored darkly and turned her head away, a number of memories flashing through her head and just as many fantasies along with it "We. Are. Staying. Here." She proclaimed flatly, locking her eyes on Hiccups.

She recognized that mischievous glint, she could see it from a mile away as he moved towards her, no more a sauntering sway, the edge of his mouth upturned into the slightest smirk as he stopped in front of her and leaned over far enough that their noses were almost touching.

They held each other's gaze, she could see the smirk on his face in his eyes as he spoke "I can't guarantee I'll be able to control myself, milady."

The husky whisper of his voice made her knee's weaken slightly as her entire body caught on fire, her eyes widened at him and she leaned away slightly her hands balled into fists over her mouth an she contained the very girlish squeak that attempted to leave her throat.

Hiccup lifted an eyebrow at her suggestively before moving away from her, he leaned against Toothless leisurely as he sat down, letting his head role back against the dragons side as he watched her.

She fought the battle with her embarrassment for a moment, shaking her head roughly to knock away a few more _wild_ fantasies from her head as she turned on her heel and paused, a thought occurred to her as her foot slid forward, a wicked grin spread on her face as she walked away from her, making sure to give her hips some obvious and incredibly tantalizing shakes.

Hiccup noticed the action, when she turned to look at him he abruptly snapped his head to the side and focused on the tree's above the edge of the cove, Astrid smirked to herself at the victory, she had _gotten_ him to stare and then caught him.

Two could most definitely play at this game.

Toothless eyed the two humans in mild amusement, at the very least it was entertaining, he glanced over at Ghost, who was curled up and asleep he warbled silently as he watched Hiccup get caught admiring his mates backside, Toothless wasn't sure why that was embarrassing.

Humans were silly creatures. He concluded as he laid his head down, his eye lazily gliding over his friends injuries, a few of them would scar and Toothless felt a twinge of guilt pinch at his core, he could have done more for his friend.

As if sensing the dragons discomfort Hiccup rubbed a small circle on Toothless stomach "Don't worry bud, I won't do anything this reckless again."

Toothless gave the boy a blank look and warbled at him, clearly unconvinced, his name might as well have been changed to Hiccup 'The Reckless' Horrendous Haddock, he practically lived and breathed recklessness.

"Well, at least not for awhile." Hiccup amended, scratching at the back of his head.

Toothless just flopped back to the ground with a loud thump.

Astrid peered over the top of Stormfly's neck, watching Hiccup interact with Toothless quietly, the dragon slumped to the ground and his tail whipped around to slap against the back of Hiccup's head, the boy rubbed at the sore spot and shot a glare at his dragon, Toothless warbled in amusement and Hiccup got to his feet and walked away from his dragon.

Hiccup sat next to the lake and swirled the water around with his hand and sighed, Astrid approached him after tossing Stormfly a fish and sat down next to him, Hiccup drew up his legs and placed his chin on his knees.

Astrid found herself wrestling with the urge to play with the messy mane of hair on the back of his head, she could definitely put a few braids in the longer bit at the back, maybe if she did it casually he wouldn't notice, yeah she could pull of casually braiding her boyfriends-fiancé's hair.

She pushed her worry away and shifted closer to him, her hand moved into the back of his hair slowly and she rubbed at the back of his head soothingly and watched his reactions, he leaned his head back slightly and let his eyes drift closed, clearly relaxing into her touch, she smiled slightly to herself as she wrapped a small section of hair around her finger.

She tied a small braid behind his ear, she only realized he was watching her curiously when she finished, a single lazy emerald eye regarded her with simple curious amusement.

She colored slightly and pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, glancing at any other spot that wasn't his face "W-What?" She asked simply

Hiccup let out a low chuckle "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Astrid replied plainly

Hiccup lifted an eyebrow and his hand moved towards the small braid slowly, Astrid's hand shot out an caught it mid movement and a small grin played out on his face "Spill it." He commanded playfully.

"I braided your hair," Astrid let out stiffly "I just thought it was long enough that I _actually_ could and…stuff."

Hiccup's face contorted in confusion "Why did you braid my hair?" He wasn't angry, just curious.

She shrugged "Cause I thought I could…and stuff."

"Like what stuff specifically?" Hiccup questioned, turning around to face her.

She watched him carefully and her hand moved to her own braid and gave it a small tug, if he noticed the nervous habit he didn't bring it up, just watched her patiently awaiting his answer "I thought it might be fun." She answered, it wasn't entirely untrue.

Hiccup moved towards her and she leaned back, his stubble grazed against the skin of her neck and she could feel his breath against her ear "And?" He asked, she could picture his face, turning into that stupid lopsided grin he loved so much as his voice vibrated against the side of her head.

"I thought maybe, just maybe mind you," Astrid began to explain, pushing him away from her lightly in order to properly breath again "That, I don't know, it could be _our_ thing."

Hiccup titled his head back and lifted an eyebrow, she gestured to her own braid and blushed darkly and looked away "Never mind, forgot it, it's stupid."

Hiccup grinned widely and leaned towards her, her breath caught in her throat as he captured her lips in his own pushing her back slightly as he pressed against her slightly her hands found a comfortable nook on his back as she leaned her head back to deepen the kiss.

Hiccup pulled back after a few long seconds, still grinning from ear to ear as his face hovered beside her ear again "There are plenty of more _fun_ ways to mark each other you know." He purred into her ear.

Astrid was still a little drunk from the kiss before she noticed her had moved, his teeth grazed along the edge of her jaw as he left light kisses down the side of her neck, her head lulled to the side to grant him access as she rolled back, Hiccup followed her over, resting his weight on his arm as he worked down her neck before pausing to nip at the area her shoulder met her neck.

He was rewarded with a low moan and he smirked against her smooth skin as he moved his mouth over that spot with a little more force, catching the skin in his teeth to nibble at it while he sucked lightly on her neck, he pulled back, his effort awarded with a very noticeable bruise on her pale skin.

As Hiccup pulled back to inspect her face she noticed his slight wince and her eyes widened as she sat forward abruptly, Hiccup watched her in surprise as she stopped his movement with a palm, he noticed the direction her eyes moved and he let out a whimper in complaint.

"You split the cut on your side." She stated as she pushed him over, forcing him to lie down as she walked over to the medical supplies Gothi had left with her.

Hiccup glanced down at the slowly expanding patch of red on his side, he rolled his eyes and gave her a long sidelong stare "Maybe if you didn't have such a beautiful face this wouldn't have happened." He jokingly complained

Astrid tried really hard not to smile at him as she crouched beside him and ordered him to lie back down, "Too bad for you, I was born with this beautiful face." Astrid quipped in response as she undid the bandage, she eyed the trail of blood running down his side and the pale red scar of the shallow cut that ran along his chest and grimaced, she wiped the blood carefully and re-stitched the edge of the wound.

Hiccup studied the girls face as she worked, she was confident, calm, precise and worried, he could recognize the slight furrow in her brow the look on her face when she saw his scar his stomach flipped and a biting guilt gnawed at his stomach "Astrid…" He trailed off when she looked at him, slight surprise mixed with curiosity, he shouldn't look into her eyes that was just dangerous, he turned his head away slightly "I-I'm sorry."

"Hey, were Vikings, it's an occupational hazard." Astrid laughed mirthlessly at her joke and Hiccup grimaced, his mouth moving into a slight smile that vanished almost just as quickly.

"I'll definitely be more careful from now on," He smiled as she tightened the bandage "Can't get anymore scars on me, I don't want to give you too much competition."

"Ah yes, scrawny scarred unassuming dragon rider types are all the rage right now." Astrid rolled her eyes.

"Scrawny?" Hiccup asked, holding his arms out to either side of him and looked down confusion marring his face, Astrid's eyes trailed over his exposed stomach and chest involuntarily, she heard him snicker and she glanced up at his eyes watching her in amusement "I don't think you dislike what you see."

Astrid blushed slightly and turned her head away from him "Shut up."

* * *

Hiccup wasn't freed from his confinement for another two days, after which Astrid concluded that he was safe to make the flight back to Berk, although he could have easily done it earlier, he had a suspicion she was just trying to avoid leaving him to his father for as long as possible.

The flight back was calm, almost leisurely, the last few weeks of worry, fear, fighting and adrenaline finally over Hiccup felt like he could breathe easier as he relaxed atop Toothless's back, he glanced over at Astrid who was riding Stormfly with a small grin on her face, his eyes trailed over her form and rested on the small spot at her neck, the only evidence anything had even happened while they were alone in the cove.

He smirked to himself as he debated whether or not to tell her, he wasn't sure if she knew or not. Nope, this was revenge for keeping him locked up with excuses for an extra day.

They landed in the centre of Berk's square and were greeted by a few of the villagers, most of them were too busy moving about to properly talk to them, Hiccup watched the village in curiosity and slight confusion. The air was thick with a tension he didn't recognize he glanced at Astrid over the back of Toothless as he moved towards the forge, where Gobber wailed away on a sword, hearing Hiccup enter he lifted his head.

"Ah, your back lad, Gothi told me not to work you for a few days longer though so don't even think about it!" Gobber warned flatly, waving his hammer at the boy animatedly.

"I'm not coming in here to work," Hiccup flashed his palms quickly "What's going on? Why's the village seem so…tense."

"Ah, you noticed." Gobber nodded his head and rubbed at his beard for a moment "The Berserker Tribe are coming to sign another peace treaty, we do it once every few years but the village always goes into a more alert state, a Berserker Armada at your front door ain't exactly comforting to Vikings these days."

Hiccup nodded his head slowly "Did you make the repairs I asked for?"

"Oh Aye, can't have Berk's heir looking like a slob with the Berserker Chief on the way," Gobber moved away from the anvil and into the back of the store, Hiccup heard something clatter followed by a string of colorful curses flying from Gobber's mouth before the large man emerged from the back and placed Hiccup's armor down on the bench, the scarred helmet stared at Hiccup and the armor itself looked darker and more shiny since he had last seen it.

"All polished up and repainted," Gobber declared with pride "I'll never understand your obsession with hidden contraptions nearly stabbed myself twice with the damned blade on your shield you know!"

Hiccup laughed "Didn't take you for someone who'd be afraid of a few more scars Gobber."

"Oh, haha!" Gobber exclaimed sarcastically "Glad to see your sense of comedy hasn't dulled with your near death experience."

Hiccup chuckled in response as he pulled his armor on slowly.

* * *

Astrid watched Hiccup move into the forge and began herding Stormfly towards her stable, as she removed the dragons saddle she spotted Ruffnut moving towards her with a wide grin on her face, there was no way this was going to end well.

"Soo," Ruffnut began slowly, eyebrow rising a few millimeters "You look like you had _fun_."

Astrid stared at the girl, confusion clearly written on her face "What?" She asked flatly

Ruffnut tilted her head and grinned "Oh you mean you didn't notice? Oh, Hiccup you sly dog."

Astrid held up a hand to get the female twins attention "Explain now." Astrid ordered flatly.

"I could, but it'd be much more fun to show you," Ruffnut shrugged as she walked over to Astrid's axe, she examined her own face in the axe blade before she concluded it would suffice and moved towards Astrid and held up the blade "What do you see?"

"My reflection." Astrid sighed in reply, her face had nothing out of the ordinary on it, Ruffnut's grin widened slightly as she tilted the blade slightly.

"Now what?" Ruffnut prompted.

"It's just my ne-" Astrid's hand shot up to the small purple and red spot on her neck and her eyes widened in shock, her cheeks colored in embarrassment, how did she not notice that?! When did he even…a flash of memories shot through her head and her jaw tightened she took her axe from Ruffnut's hands and moved passed the female twin with a long stride.

Ruffnut watched the girl leave and shrugged "I'm sure it'll be fine." She thought aloud as she left to go find her brother.

* * *

Hiccup was attempting to balance his pen on his nose out of pure boredom when he heard Gobber greet Astrid and his face paled slightly as the girl walked into his small backroom.

He definitely should have told her before they came back.

He'd never seen anyone manage to look so _terrifying_ while they were smiling at him, he backed away from Astrid slowly and held out his hands in surrender "Uh, to what do I owe the pleasure milady?" He asked nervously

Astrid's eyebrow twitched as she moved towards him, axe lifting threateningly as she spoke "Oh nothing, I just wanted to make sure you didn't go off _mark_ and start working while you're still hurt."

Damnit, Hiccup thought to himself as his mouth turned into a worried smile "No, of course not just taking it easy in here, trying to think up some new designs." He replied simply, a bead of sweat dripping from his forehead.

"Oh good, I wouldn't want to have to tie you up, I don't really know how to tie things loosely so the ropes would most definitely leave a _mark_." Astrid stepped toward him slowly

"I'm sorry?" Hiccup let out in confusion.

Astrid's axe landed in the wall beside his head with a thunk and his eyes widened as he turned his head to look at it, his face blanked completely and any and all the things he was thinking about simply floated out of his head as Astrid strode towards him and grabbed his chin, his eyes widened in surprise as she turned his head forward and crashed her lips against his.

Hiccup's confusion only grew as she kissed him, but his eyes fell closed naturally as he moved his head forward and his arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her flush against him, they pulled back after a moment and Hiccup watched Astrid with hooded eyes as she moved her teeth along the edge of his jaw her mouth slid down as her hand drew soft circles on his stomach, she pushed forward and he could feel her heat even through his armor as her mouth moved over his neck and drew an involuntary groan from his throat before she bit down on his neck.

Hiccup's body jerked against her and his eyes popped open with surprise as she suckled and nibbled at his neck before pulling back, she gave him a quick once over and nodded before leaving the room with a few quick steps, Hiccup eyed the door in surprise and he heard her say her bid her goodbyes to Gobber, his hand moved to the spot on his neck slowly and he winced when he applied a small amount of pressure to the quick forming bruise.

Hiccup learned two very important things in that moment, Astrid is scary and it was most definitely a bad idea to give her a hickey.

That also didn't stop him from concluding that he _really_ wanted to do it again.

* * *

The days passed quickly after that, people eventually got tired of asking why Hiccup always had his helmet on and his mask down and why Astrid was wearing a scarf even though it wasn't actually all that cold, well, all that cold by Berk standards.

When they received a message stating that the Berserker chief would arrive in less than a day, the village sprung into a quick action, completing the last of the preparations that were necessary.

Hiccup was sitting cross legged and watching the ocean calmly, the roiling waves keeping his attention occupied in a rare moment of calm he got in the last few days, his injuries had healed almost completely the scar was still tender but it was strong enough he could effectively move around without worry.

He heard his father's heavy footed steps behind him and glanced up "Hiccup, there's something I need you to do."

Hiccup watched his father calmly and rose to his feet "Sure dad, what is it?"

"I want you to take the dragons and hide them, the Berserker Tribe doesn't know about our peace with the dragons and I don't desire to turn them into an enemy, after the treaty is signed I can tell them about it without starting a war."

Hiccup nodded his head in understanding "The caves on the eastern side of the island should be safe enough, but isn't the Berserker Chief considered reasonable? Surely if you just explain there wouldn't be a problem."

Stoick's face hardened slightly "I don't know why but it seems that Dagur the Deranged, the Berserker Chief's son is coming to sign the treaty."

Hiccup had some knowledge of who Dagur was, thanks to the books his father had given him shortly after he arrived at Berk. Hiccup's eyes narrowed slightly as he nodded his head "I understand."

Stoick nodded his head gratefully as Hiccup gestured for Toothless to follow him, as Hiccup moved to pass Stoick the man grabbed the boys shoulder and smiled slightly "One other thing, I understand that you and Astrid are at _that_ age, but you really need to keep it more… _subtle_."

Hiccup's eyes widened and his hand clapped over the mark still clearly visible on his neck as he pulled his helmet "I'll, uh, keep that, uh in mind dad, thanks!" He got out in a rapid ramble before he darted down the hill.

Stoick merely chuckled to himself, he had faith the teenagers wouldn't go _too_ far, but a little warning couldn't possibly hurt, probably.

* * *

Hiccup's eyebrow twitched in irritation.

"No, it's my dragon! I'll tell it when and where to move!" Tuffnut shouted at his sister, the female twin slammed her head into her brother and the two glared at each other angrily.

They were halfway to where they needed to be, Dagur would be arriving in less than an hour and the twins just decided to pick _today_ to be completely unreliable.

Hiccup wasn't even surprised and that's what irritated him.

"This is _our_ dragon! Two heads, two riders!" Ruffnut hissed in response.

"I don't care whose dragon it is!" Hiccup roared, separating the two twins in a swift movement, the eyed him in surprise "Enough is going on without you two at each other's throats! If Dagur see's _any_ of our dragons they are as good as dead and we have _another_ enemy and quite possibly _another_ war!"

The teens deflated slightly as Hiccup watched them "Barf and Belch aren't property, the dragons aren't something either of you _own_ they are companions and if you want to keep them alive keep quiet and move them."

The teens nodded quickly and the group arrived at their destination without anymore issues, Hiccup heard a horn sound and glanced outside the mouth of the cave "I need to get back," He voiced quickly turning to Toothless, Ghost had followed the black nightfury along easily enough "Toothless I need you to stay here and keep the others out of trouble."

Toothless eyed the boy calmly and warbled something that gave Hiccup the impression of leave it to me and the boy nodded quickly before glancing at the other teens, he nodded to Astrid who nodded quickly in return and Hiccup darted out of the cave.

"Alright, I'll definitely keep _my_ dragon safe!" Tuffnut exclaimed loudly

Astrid rolled her eyes in annoyance and sighed.

* * *

Stoick glanced around the port quickly, hoping so spot Hiccup before Dagur arrived as th ship pulled into port it looked like Hiccup wouldn't make it in time, Stoick just hoped Dagur wouldn't take offense, especially with the entire armada sitting just of Berk's coast.

The board plank thudded against the dock and the guards at the edge of the boat split apart as Dagur strode over the edge of his ship towards the dock, his eyes held a glint that brought Stoick nothing but unease as the boy walked forward and held out his hand Stoick clasped it firmly.

"Stoick, it's certainly been a long time." Dagur announced jovially.

Stoick inclined his head and smiled "Aye, that it has Dagur."

"How is Berk? Holding strong against the dragon scourge?" Dagur asked

Stoick nodded his head "Actually my son returned and personally destroyed the queen at the dragons nest."

"I've heard, killing the Red Death is certainly a feat for that _runt_." Dagur almost hissed the word and Stoick's eyes tightened, even if he did not speak, he was mentally debating if this treaty was truly worth it.

"Where is the _runt_? Surely he does not mean to dishonor me by not even appearing?! The Chief of the Berserkers means this little to you Stoick?" Dagur demanded

"Forgive me, but last I checked Alvin the Agreeable was chief of the Berserker Tribe." Gobber half asked half stated from behind Stoick.

"Ah, my father certainly was chief," Dagur nodded and let out a laugh "That is, before I _retired_ him."

Stoick's eyes widened slightly and he watched the boy with a wary expression "I'm sure my son is on his way here right now."

"Is he busy hiding this Dragon Army of yours?" Dagur asked, eyeing Stoick flatly, suspicion clear in his expression.

"Dragon Army?" Dagur's head whipped around as Hiccup landed on one of the docks supports lightly, he perched on the post and tilted his head, eyes reflecting the amused smile that was no doubt plastered on his face "Sorry Dagur, you won't find something so tradition defying here on Berk."

Dagur eyed the armored boy in a mixture of a surprise and slight awe, Hiccup's crouched position allowed him to lean his elbows on his knees his shield reflected the light as he watched Dagur with calculating look in his eyes "You certainly look like you've changed."

"Growing up in the forest will do that too you." Hiccup replied flatly as he hopped down.

"Ah yes, I heard about the 'Dragonboy of Berk' so that was you?" Dagur asked with a laugh.

"You seemed to have heard a lot about Berk," Hiccup replied calmly as he shook Dagur's hand, Stoick could have sword he saw lightning arc from the looks the two were giving each other "But yes, that was me."

"A chief has to have all the information he can," Dagur sounded almost threatening "Now, how about a tour of Berk!"

Stoick smirked "I'd be happy to oblige that request."

Hiccup remained a few steps behind Stoick and Dagur, he watched the pair calmly, Dagur kept sending quick looks his way as Stoick moved from building to building and a feeling of worry spread from Hiccup's stomach.

Dagur knew more than he let on and Hiccup was sure he was not going to like how this day played out.

* * *

"Butt elf." Ruffnut shot at her brother.

"Oh, so now we are just descending into insults? You bride of Grendel!" Tuffnut shot back.

Astrid raked a hand over her face in annoyance, the twins hadn't stopped arguing at all as they made their way into the centre of Berk, they spotted Stoick and part, Dagur caught sight of them and moved forward an excited smile on his face that made the hair on Astrid's arms stand on end.

"It's been a long time!" Dagur announced as he arrived

"Dagur!" Snotlout sounded excitedly darting forward.

"Ah, Earwax right?" Dagur glanced at Snotlout in greeting.

"Uh, it's Snotlout." The Jorgenson responded simply.

"Oh, sorry, been awhile you know," Dagur shrugged, his eyes flitted across the group and stopped to rest on Astrid "You're as beautiful as ever I see."

Astrid's jaw tightened, she saw Stoick watching her carefully so she force a smile on her face "Thank you very much."

"Oh," Dagur tilted his head and his mouth pulled into a smile as his hand moved forward, Astrid stood firm "For someone like you-" He cut off when someone grabbed his hand firmly, his eyes moved to Hiccup in surprise and the words died in his throat as Hiccup shot him an icy glare through the scared side of his mask.

"Careful Dagur," Hiccup voiced, his warning tone not going unnoticed by the group as Astrid peered at him "Astrid is _mine_."

The group eyed Hiccup in surprise, Astrid's eyes widened as she watched Hiccup in disbelief, his tone didn't falter and his face didn't change as he pushed Dagur's hand away with a shove and moved beside Astrid his hand slipped around her back and rested on her waist.

Dagur looked between the two for a few seconds before shrugging "If you don't make something like that public how is a man supposed to know Hiccup?!" He laughed it off and Hiccup leaned his head back clearly unimpressed at the cover up as Dagur moved towards him, the two stared each other down for a few seconds before the tour continued.

Astrid's brain took a few more seconds to catch up as Hiccup untangled himself from her, he scratched at his neck in slight embarrassment "Sorry, I just uh," He trailed off and took a breath "Didn't want him to touch you."

She missed the warmth of his side against the moment he stepped away and her hand shot out before she could really think about it, she pulled him back quickly and he eyed her in slight surprise she watched him with a slightly raised eyebrow and a small smirk on her face, she saw his eyes surrender and his hand moved around her back to rest on her waist again.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Tuffnut exclaimed quickly

The group turned to him "THE SCRAWNY WILD BOY WAS HICCUP! RUFFNUT YOU LIED TO ME!" He bellowed loudly.

Hiccup looked at Astrid in confusion and Ruffnut broke into laughter "I, almost completely forgot about that!" The female twin held her sides as laughter bubbled from her mouth loudly.

Astrid just groaned and ran a hand through her hair as she walked over to Tuffnut and cocked her arm back he fist connected with his head and he dropped to the ground, Ruffnut leaned over the top of him as Astrid reconnected herself with Hiccup's side.

"A five huh, Astrid has a better arm than you sis." Tuffnut stated flatly.

"Oh, I've just always held back a little, I don't wanna kill you, mom would get mad at me." Ruffnut explained simply.

The teens paused when a loud roar reached their ears, they all recognized that dragon call, they'd heard it time and time again.

The sound of a Zippleback.

* * *

 **A/N: Heh, bit of a cliffhanger but not really sense you guys know pretty much how this is gonna play out, I couldn't really come up with any solid arcs for this bit so I am going to just mimic the cannon material (Well, there will be a few changes.) regardless I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **Replies!**

 **Hypernova 5.0: Permission completely granted, you definitely have to tell me how it goes though, I think that'll be interesting! Glad you liked the chapter!**

 **RUBYJEMS: Well, Hiccup isn't really a feral child, he did have someone there to raise him for some of his childhood, his 'feral' side is something he created himself to keep him safe, the 'feral' side is more in tune with animals and his senses are a little sharper when he's in that state (Although, the states gone now.) So he's just plain ol' Hiccup, well, my version of plain ol'Hiccup anyway,**

 **Shadowspirit020: How could I kill off Hiccup?! It wouldn't be HTTYD without him, jeez have a little more faith in me.**

 **I'm really glad everyone seems to be enjoying the chapters, I've been kind of neglecting this story and I apologize for that, I'm bringing it back though! Don't worry I'm definitely going to finish it! With that, I'll see you all in the next one, peace!**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: I'm not quite dead, okay, I'm very alive and I'm terribly sorry I got lazy, I bounced around my way too many fandom's, dealt with plot bunnies and ended up having writers block for my HTTYD fan fictions, but fear not, I'm not abandoning them, they will be finished! The issue comes mostly from the way my head works, I don't like forcing myself to write chapters because they always turn out…just kinda shit so I generally hop around stories until my brain decides to work with me which it is, so I'm gonna stop droning on and let you get into the chapter, hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The teens glanced between each other and Dagur's grin took on a sinister edge as the roar subsided, Stoick looked to Hiccup and Hiccup glanced back in a silent gesture of 'I'll handle it.' Stoick inclined his head calmly.

"Hm, sounds like a wilds on the eastern side of the island," Hiccup hummed looking in the direction of the roar "Ruffnut Tuffnut, Zippleback's are your area of expertise, I trust we can leave it to you."

"Hold on their Hiccup," Dagur stepped towards the armored boy quickly "Is it not tradition to sign this treaty with the blood of the dragon?"

"You know something Dagur," Hiccup began "Tradition is a way of the old, I didn't take you for someone so much like your _father_."

The young berserker's eye twitched angrily at the veiled insult "You know, I would normally agree with you, but I find myself with an urge to rip something apart, so why don't we make this the anniversary, marking the _end_ of this tradition."

"Ending it the way it started huh?" Hiccup rubbed at the edge of his mask "Didn't take you for the poetic type Dagur."

"I'm just full of surprises." Dagur responded with a suggestive grin.

"Alright, we will do it your way and as it was your idea I assume you will be leading this hunt?" Hiccup offered, Astrid caught a glint in his eye, it was a look that everything Hiccup planned was falling so perfectly into place and from the way Dagur puffed out his chest and smiled proudly, Astrid knew Hiccup was rolling the berserker in the palm of his hand.

"Of course I am." Dagur declared loudly as he strode passed Hiccup, being sure to slam the boy with a rough shoulder as he passed him, Hiccup watched after him unmoving and silent an amused glow in his impossibly green eyes.

"Hiccup," Stoick began, glancing at the twins who were suddenly very concerned about their dragon "I know you probably have a plan, I'm even more certain that I won't like it…but I want you to know I," Stoick paused "And the whole of Berk stand behind you."

Hiccup's eyes softened reflecting the smile on his face "Thanks dad."

His eyes narrowed as Dagur called to him from atop the hill leading into the forest "Our treaty with the Berserkers ends today, from this day onward, Berk stands with the dragons as open allies."

Stoick nodded his head and turned to the other adults, no doubt making plans to force the Berserker's fleet out of their waters.

"Snotlout, Ruff Tuff, help my dad with whatever he needs." Hiccup ordered simply the teens nodded and darted over to Stoick quickly, Ruffnut and Tuffnut throwing in an animated salute as they slid to a stop.

"What about us?" Astrid asked, Fishlegs lifted his eyebrow clearly curious as well.

"Now, an heir of Berk is nothing without his personal guard." Hiccup quipped and the pair grinned in understanding as they followed after Hiccup who began moving towards Dagur.

As the group moved through the forest quickly and silently, Hiccup studied the way Dagur moved, his habits, his speed, his strength, he used every excuse available to make Dagur go into defensive or offensive stances. Astrid and Fishlegs followed knowingly, but kept their faces impassive, only speaking when coming to defense when Hiccup created a falsified fact, agreeing readily and questioning how one such as Dagur didn't know.

The response was almost always "Of course I know about that." Followed by the berserker storming off into the forest, in those moments Hiccup would take a few moments to explain things to Fishlegs and Astrid.

After this was repeated a few times, Hiccup stopped speaking, instead focusing on moving silently as they approached the 'destination' Hiccup had set up, they paused a moment and Fishlegs spoke.

"I feel like this is sort of unnecessary, we could easily trick Dagur he's not the brightest of opponents," Fishlegs voiced quietly, glancing to where Dagur was eyeing the tree tops "Why go to these lengths."

"Allies that will eventually turn on us are far from allies," Hiccup sounded logically "Even if we tricked him, signed the treaty today and it lasted a month it would only be wasted effort, with this we can take out some of the Berserker Tribe's fighting strength as well as level the playing field for the future."

Fishlegs fell silent for a few seconds, Hiccup watched the blonde Ingermen calmly, Fishlegs nodded his head in understanding "You two can head back now, I'll be dealing with Dagur alone, my dad will need all the help he can get."

Fishlegs nodded and moved back through the forest, Astrid hesitated for a moment, grabbing Hiccups hand and turning him towards her, she lifted his face mask quickly and planted a quick kiss on his cheek "Be careful, Dagur's always been an unpredictable type."

Hiccup tilted his head and she could see the smirk on his face "Does milady have such little faith in me?"

Astrid rolled her eyes "See you when you get back."

Hiccup nodded his head and moved away from her, she watched his back disappear through the trees and turned and darted to Fishlegs silently.

* * *

Hiccup delayed Dagur for a few minutes to be sure that Astrid and Fishlegs had gotten a good bit of distance from them, they broke into a large clear field, long grass swayed in the wind as Hiccup moved to the centre of the field, Dagur trailing a small distance behind him.

"Where are the other two? Surely your _personal_ guard aren't so easily left behind." Dagur began with a laugh.

Hiccup lifted his face mask silently and brought a hand to his mouth, the roar that left his throat caused a chill to run down Dagur's spine, the roar of a Nightfury was as unforgettable as it was terrifying, the roar that answered caused Dagur's head to snap into the sky. As the jet black beast swooped into the clearing and landed in front of Hiccup, the beast nuzzled into Hiccups outstretched hand and Dagur's eyes widened in surprise.

"W-What is the meaning of this?!" Dagur demanded angrily, hand moving to the hilt of his sword.

"You know something Dagur," Hiccup began slowly as he pulled his face mask back down "You have this nasty habit of talking down to the people around you."

Hiccup dropped quickly and rushed towards the berserker chief stopping shy of his face, forcing Dagur to stare through the slits in his helmet "I've always…really hated people that do that."

Dagur recoiled from Hiccup as the boy slammed his palm in the berserkers chest, Dagur narrowly avoided the blow by jumping backwards "Explain yourself!" Dagur demanded

Hiccup held his hand outstretched beside him "Berk stands with the dragons."

"So it is true, you really are a _traitor_!" Dagur hissed at him

"Hah!" Hiccup threw his head back in a bark of a laugh "I've betrayed nothing Dagur."

"By siding with that _beast_ , you've betrayed your people, our traditions, our beliefs you betrayed _everything_!" Dagur's voice was laced with anger and venom.

"Berk has abandoned _your_ tradition," Hiccup shot back as he slid his foot forward and lowered his weight "We will create our own traditions from now on."

"You will be crushed under my boot," Dagur threatened dangerously "You and the rest of your pathetic village, you will become a lesson in the history books, the entire archipelago will know of this treachery!"

"Most of this archipelago already knows," Hiccup countered "But you won't be alive to crush anybody."

Hiccup launched forward and Dagur moved to draw his sword, before the top of the hilt was kicked down, sheathing the blade before it could be drawn, Hiccup back stepped out of Dagur's reach and dropped low slamming his boot into Dagur's stomach as Dagur stumbled back he drew his sword and swung down at Hiccup who hopped back out of the way as the Berserker moved into his offensive.

Hiccup stepped, bobbed and weaved out of the blades range, watching Dagur closely.

Dagur grit his teeth, he knew Hiccup had been studying him when they were moving through the forest, he had felt the boys eyes on him at every movement, but had played it off, he had thought that all the observation in the world wouldn't give the _runt_ of Stoick the Vast such fighting ability.

Describing Hiccup's mindset in that moment, as he danced out of the reach of Dagur's blade, would be calm, like the surface of a lake in a cave, completely undisturbed, until he had broken the surface, every millimeter he sank deeper into that mindset was a detail in Dagur's movement he noticed, a slight shift in the shoulder, a small alteration to the grip on his sword, every little detail became painfully obvious in those moments.

Dagur planted his foot and lifted his sword high, Hiccup took advantage of the strike, shifting from defensive to offensive in the blink of an eye, dropping down he kicked high knocking the sword flying into the air and out of Dagur's hands, the berserker chiefs surprise remained on his face for only a second as Hiccup slammed his elbow into the boys gut, Dagur lurched forward and Hiccup drove his palm into his opponents chin Dagur staggered back and Hiccup closed the distance with a powerful step as he rotated his palms and pulled them towards his chest, as his foot planted his hands shot forward slamming both palms hard into either side of Dagur's chest.

Dagur flew back as the blow landed with a thunderous crack, the berserker chief rolled and toppled over, ramming his fist into the ground to slide himself to a stop and sending a scathing glare towards Hiccup.

Hiccup straightened calmly, meeting the glare with a level stare as he tugged lightly on the straps beneath his shield, Dagur rose to his feet and his teeth flashed in a snarl as he reached behind himself and withdrew two curved daggers, Hiccup glanced at the weapons and lifted an eyebrow in curiosity, he swore he recognized the shape of those weapons.

"Look familiar don't they?" Dagur's grin widened as his eyes changed "Made from the teeth of a Red Death."

Hiccup shifted his feet slightly, his shield caught the light and glinted as he positioned it in front of himself in preparation, silently watching his opponent and awaiting his next move.

"You aren't the only one that can kill a beast that massive," Dagur laughed "But I did it without the help of a dragon!"

Dagur launched forward, Hiccup back stepped and spun forward, the shield on his arm slamming against the cross daggers Dagur wielded with the grate of steel, Hiccup's eyes met Dagur's for a few seconds as the two locked against each other, the violent rage caused Dagur's eyes to glow as they met with the calm emerald green of Hiccup's.

The two broke apart and Dagur rushed forward, relentlessly pounding against Hiccup's shield in a furious onslaught of blows Hiccup could only block to avoid getting overwhelmed, Dagur struck down and Hiccup seized the chance to unbalance his opponent, as Dagur's blow met his shield Hiccup struck up, deflecting the blow into the air and forcing Dagur back a couple of steps before Dagur could recover Hiccup shifted forward, blade snapping forward from the front of his shield as he drove it towards Dagur's head, the Berserker abandoned one of the daggers ad brought his arm down, the blade grated against the steel of Dagur's armguard and cut across his cheek.

The whistle of an arrow caused Hiccup to lift his free hand, the arrow clasped in the centre of his palm, his eyes turned to the shooter, a Berserker man crouched at the edge of the clearing was readying another shot as another ran towards Dagur, Hiccup snapped the arrow in his palm and Dagur slammed a kick into Hiccup's exposed side, using the force to push himself back he collected his other dagger and sheathed it.

"Sir, the attack came out of nowhere, half the fleet has already been destroyed we need to retreat for now!" The berserker soldier relayed to Dagur hastily as another arrow flew towards Hiccup, it pinged off of Hiccup's shield uselessly and Hiccup rotated quickly and readied his own dagger, flipping it to hold the blade he launched it with a quick flip of the wrist, the silver glinted a moment in flight before striking the archers neck, Hiccup turned an irritated glare onto Dagur.

"It would seem this match has been brought to an unsatisfying reprieve, but mark my words _Dragonboy_ this isn't the end, for you or for Berk." Dagur gestured for the remaining man to move with a flick of his head and the berserkers fled from the clearing, Hiccup glanced at Toothless and debated chasing them down and killing them now, ultimately deciding against it, that was not the purpose of his fight against Dagur.

"You're right about that Dagur, this is only the beginning." Hiccup replied levelly, even though Toothless was the only one there to hear him.

* * *

 **A/N: I know this is super short, well, it's actually still almost 2,500 words so I mean it's not THAT short, but short on other my other chapters standards, simply put I think a lot has happened in this chapter and anything more I put in here would just be dragging it out, I think the ending for this little bit should be satisfactory and I can say with certainty there will be more updates coming for this story in the coming days, with that I hope you've all enjoyed this chapter and I will see you next time, now then**

 **REPLIES!**

 **ShadowSpirit020: Yeah, protective Hiccup everywhere! I don't know if I'd call this chaos, but trickery is afoot!**

 **ArthurShade: Glad you enjoyed!**

 **xXgabeXx: Psh, I have no idea what your quoting, I'd never write something like that, *utters silent prayer of thanks for editing* But, seriously thanks for pointing that out!**

 **UnbreakableWarrior: Well, I hope you enjoy this one as much as the last :)**

 **OechsnerC: Honestly not sure how to take this review, carry on.**

 **Carl Solo: Thanks for the kind words, I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far and I can guarantee I will eventually slap a 'completed' sticker on it, so I hope you continue to enjoy the chapters!**

 **The Dragon1010: I'm glad you find the story interesting and I look forward to any opinions you have in the future!**

 **dark shadey01: I know this is SUPER late, but Happy Birthday anyway, I hope you had a good one! I'm glad you've been enjoying the story so far! Also, it would completely defeat the purpose of a cliffhanger if you liked them so I'm taking the veiled compliment that may or may not actually be there.  
**

 **As always a big thanks to everyone who reads, reviews, favorites or follows this story, you guys, you da real MVP'S, I don't know why I said that but I hope you enjoyed this all the same!**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Yo, Quickly addressing a few questions, mostly surrounding Dagur and Hiccup's fight in the last chapter, firstly whilst Dagur isn't necessarily shown to be so crazy about tradition other than in the episode where it seems like he is simply trying to cause problems with it, I liked the idea of that being his motivation, that he believes whole heartedly that Berk has completely betrayed the Viking way of life and why he becomes so adamant about destroying it.**

 **Secondly, why Toothless doesn't interfere with Dagur and Hiccup's fight, in a simple word it would be because of Toothless's intelligence, he is aware on some level that Hiccup and Dagur's fight was something that had to be resolved between them and chooses to leave it to Hiccup as far as blocking the arrow goes, I played around with that bit for a while and went with the last version mostly for badass points, so do with it what you will!**

 **Thirdly, why they allow Dagur and his men to escape, I plan to reveal further into why Hiccup let Dagur go as the story progresses, but for now enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Toothless rolled in the air quickly before dropping down into his landing, Hiccup dismounted with a quick step and looked around the town square, the other dragon riders had yet to return, Stoick spotted him and strode towards him.

Hiccup clasped his father's hand in a quick greeting "Dagur?"

Hiccup shifted his head slightly "I let him escape." He answered honestly.

Stoick lifted an eyebrow "I had faith in your plan then and I have it now, the others should be returning soon, everything went successfully and half of the Berserker Tribe's Armada sits in the bottom of the ocean."

Hiccup pulled off his helmet and ran a hand through his hair "Perfect," He nodded his head slowly "That will make the next phase much easier."

Stoick gestured with his head and Hiccup fell into step beside him as they walked towards Gobber's forge "So, where are we going from here?"

"It's no secret that Dagur and the Berserker's at large raid the southern fishing villages of the archipelago for pretty much everything they need." Hiccup voiced calmly "First we cut off their supply lines."

"You plan to run security detail on the southern isles?" Stoick asked curiously.

"Is that a problem?" Hiccup asked calmly

"No, they are mostly free trader types, they don't have any real leadership between the villages, it's very 'fend for yourself' out that way." Stoick explained

"Good, then a couple of dragon riders should go mostly unnoticed," Hiccup shifted his shoulder pieces calmly, he noticed his father giving him a look and he elaborated "I can't take everyone, wild dragons may still turn up on Berk and since we aren't killing them, you'll need people who know how to handle them."

Stoick inclined his head "So, who's staying who's going?"

"Snotlout, Astrid and I have the best offensive capabilities and they are definitely the faster dragon riders, speed is going to be important over the ocean, the twins and Fishlegs are the better defensive option, a Zippleback excels in ambushes, I'll split it that way and leave Legs in charge." Hiccup relayed calmly.

Stoick nodded "I'll lend any assistance to the lad I can, we will need ships if you plan an offensive."

"Fortunately we have plenty of materials we can salvage." Hiccup quipped.

Stoick laughed "Aye, that we do."

They entered the forge and Gobber glanced up "Ah, bout time you showed up, your still my apprentice you know."

Hiccup chuckled and darted into his backroom, stripping his armor he grabbed his apron and rushed back into the forge, taking up the hammer as Gobber placed a weapon on it and moved to the grindstone, Hiccup glanced at the leather in the corner and his eyes darted back to his own armor.

It would be a good idea for them to hide their faces as much as possible in foreign lands, Hiccup was the son of a chief, that made him valuable, Astrid was….well a woman and a beautiful one at that, there was more than a handful of reasons he's like to keep her out of the public eye and Snotlout was heir to an influential Viking clan and well built, he'd likely fetch a good price from Romans for sport, Gobber could see his apprentices mind working, he continued to throw glances at the leather in the corner as he hammered away, his mouth moved as if mouthing how he was going to explain how he needed it and why, Gobber peered at the weapon in his hands and peered at the edge.

"Oi, Mighty Dragon Master," Hiccup's head snapped to him and Gobber tossed the sword he had been working on to him, Hiccup caught it quickly, the weight surprised him as he rolled it over his hand "Made that as a replacement for your sword that got broken, it's as close to the original design as I could make it, used the last of our Gronkle Iron on it though."

Hiccup brought it up to eye level and drew it slightly, the silver edge glinted at him, it was longer than the previous version and used the exact same hilt, he had been so focused on his plans he hadn't even noticed, the red woven fabric that crossed the hilt looked brighter, Hiccup realized it had been replaced as well.

He sheathed it and rested it against the wall "Thank you Gobber."

"Where you're going you'll need a trusty blade," Gobber grinned "The leather there is yours to use as you will, I didn't have any idea what I was going to make out of it anyway." Gobber added as he lumbered to his feet, he nodded his goodbye and made the way out of the forge.

Toothless stuck his head through the window and warbled at Hiccup and the boy glanced at his dragon then out the window, the others should be getting back soon, he'd be done by the time they returned.

"We will fly again soon bud," Hiccup promised with a smile "We have a lot of work today."

Toothless let out an understanding chortle and laid down outside as Hiccup pulled a large section of leather from the pile and set to work.

* * *

Astrid glanced over her shoulder at the group behind her, flying in formation and finally remaining _silent_ , they had only taken so long because Snotlout and the Twins had to get into an argument about the number of ships they had sunk, ever making all things a competition.

She gave Stormfly's flank a light pat as the dragon trilled at her, they circled the square of Berk twice before setting down, Astrid looked around for the black Night Fury, most likely close by Hiccup, she found the dragon resting lazily, Ghost lay beside him eyeing the village curiously, every so often the female Night Fury would peer at Toothless, who would warble and eye roll exaggeratedly, that was followed by a light tail whip to the back of the black dragons head.

Astrid frowned, why did that interaction feel so familiar.

"Hey, I guess dragons _do_ mimic their riders," Fishlegs noted with a chuckle, Astrid glanced at the large boy questioningly and the Ingermen wiggled his eyebrows suggestively "They are just like you and Hiccup."

Astrid's eyes widened and her cheeks colored "Are not! Besides, Ghost isn't even my dragons."

Stormfly trilled and nuzzled into Astrid's hand, Astrid responded by quickly petting the Nadder's nose and shooting a glare at Fishlegs, who shrugged, she glanced at Ruffnut, whatever the blonde twin did gave Fishlegs a backbone, she wasn't sure if she liked it.

Pushing the other riders out of her mind she strode over to the forge and walked inside, she peered around the empty forge in surprise, noticing the light peaking under the door to his back room, she pushed the door open slowly and peered inside, Hiccup was hunched over his desk, light snores escaped his mouth, behind was a large white sheet covering something, suppressing the urge to peak under the sheet she walked over to the boy quietly.

She crouched beside him, placing a hand lightly on his shoulder, she reached out slowly and pushed some of his hair away from his face, he shifted slightly but remained asleep, the calm of his face caught her attention, it was not often he was so relaxed, even around her. The pale scar on his chin, the strong jaw line, the messy bushel of auburn hair on his head, the impossibly green eyes.

Her eyes widened slightly, when he grinned at her, one eye cracked open to stare back at her, she blushed and turned her face away "Morning." He greeted blearily as he sat up.

"Still evening," Astrid informed quickly "You okay?"

He tilted his head and smiled reassuringly "I'm okay, I just powered through a lot of work and felt like a nap, was still waiting for you guys so thought I might as well."

Astrid nodded stiffly in understanding "Dinner's probably nearly ready, we should go eat."

Astrid turned to leave and Hiccup's hand shot forward and grabbed hers, spinning her around as he got to his feet in a fluid movement, Astrid gasped against him as he pressed his lips against hers.

She stiffened only a moment before relaxing into the kiss, one hand tangling in his hair and the other falling onto his chest, she pulled away and tried to slap away her breathlessness "Hiccup…dinner."

"Not hungry," Hiccup answered quickly, closing the distance again, his hands trailed over her arms and down her sides, he pulled away and trailed a few kisses along her jaw, moving towards her neck before his stomach let out a guttural growl, he colored slightly and pulled away scratching the back of his head "I'm a little hungry?" He amended with a grin.

Astrid thought she hid her breathlessness well, all things considered, she let out a quiet chuckle "Okay, let's go eat."

As they left the forge Hiccup stopped abruptly, she only noticed when her hand was jerked, because she hadn't let go "What's wrong?"

"I just realized," Hiccup began "This is definitely going to postpone our wedding."

Astrid's eyes widened and her skin from her neck to her ears glowed red, her eyes darted in every direction "Either that…or we win _really_ fast?" She offered lamely.

Hiccup grinned widely, before a giggle escaped his lips, Astrid mimicked the sound before the two descended into loud laughter together, Hiccup walked over to her and intertwined his fingers with hers "It doesn't matter anyway."

Astrid lifted an eyebrow at him.

"Tomorrow, next month, next year, I'd wait forever to marry you," Astrid smiled happily as she leaned into his arm lightly, he placed a feather light kiss on her temple "I really, really love you Astrid."

"You'd better not wait _forever_ Haddock," Astrid warned in mock aggression, he flashed his palms and Astrid leaned onto her toes to place a light kiss on his cheek "I love you too, now let's go eat!"

Hiccup inclined his head and followed after her.

* * *

Toothless and Ghost watched the young couple silently "Does it worry you?"

Toothless glanced at Ghost in surprise "That one day he might not have need of you anymore?"

Toothless chuckled "Worrying about something that may not even happen is not the way of us dragons." He answered simply, watching his humans back as the door to the great hall closed "No, it does not worry me, the day he becomes strong enough to stand on his own, I will bid him farewell with pride."

"You will be left behind you know?" Ghost pointed out simply.

"He is my friend, he is the most honorable and trustworthy human I know, I am glad I befriended him, I am glad he is my rider and I take pride in that and the day he no longer needs me, I will honor that wish." Toothless explained "Because it will likely be his last."

Ghost's eyes widened in understanding, humans simply didn't live as long as dragons, she was aware of that "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

"It is fine," Toothless tilted his head, face twisting in what would be the dragon equivalent of a calm smile as he nuzzled the top of Ghost's head "Because when that day comes, I will still have you by my side."

"Of course you will," Ghost snapped "We Night Fury's are the absolute strongest dragons in the world, we can't let that name be forgotten."

Toothless warbled in amusement "Of course, milady."

* * *

Hiccup sat down next to Astrid, a leg of chicken and a hunk of bread on his plate, the teens glanced at him for a moment when he didn't begin eating right away.

"Hiccup?" Snotlout prompted, surprising everyone by going first.

The boy straightened slightly in his seat "Snotlout, Astrid you two and I are going to be taking an extended trip in the Southern Isles tonight," He opened with simply "The Berserker's raid the smaller villages dotting those islands for supplies to build their ships, we are going to cut off their supply lines and force them onto their own lands."

Snotlout nodded his head in understanding, taking a long sip of his drink.

"What about us three?" Fishlegs asked, gesturing to himself and the twins.

"You three will be a special defensive unit, under the direct control of Stoick," The way the twins faces brightened he could tell they liked the sound of it, which was good, he didn't need arguments "Fishlegs will act as team leader for your group."

Fishleg's watched Hiccup for a few seconds, expecting it to be a joke, when Hiccup remained serious, he nodded his head calmly "Leave it to me."

Astrid was actually impressed by how confident the Ingermen sounded.

"Eat well, say your goodbyes, I don't know how long this will take, but the Berserker's won't ever _breath_ funny in the direction of Berk again." Hiccup finished strongly as he picked up the bread and began eating.

The other teens joined quickly, Astrid excused herself after she finished, moving to where he parents were seated.

* * *

"My little girl, off to fight a war," Astrid couldn't tell if her mother was happy or distressed, both scared her "The Hofferson women's skill with an axe will be known across the whole archipelago."

She was definitely happy "We don't know how long I'll be gone."

"You are almost an adult and you're a dragon rider, I expected you to leave the nest early," Astrid's mother replied "But I expect you to keep any," Her mother paused for a moment " _Urges_ , in check just because you are outside of adult supervision."

She glanced pointedly towards Hiccup and Astrid colored "Uh, Yeah, oh, um, of, of course!" Astrid stuttered out in embarrassment.

"I mean it Astrid, no children until you two are properly married!" Astrid's mother said sternly.

"Mom!" Astrid exclaimed, mortified expression marring her feature.

"No, Astrid, no _children_ , you understand me?" Astrid frowned at her mother in confusion, before realization dawned on her and she colored darkly.

"O-Okay, I…I'm just gonna pretend I didn't get that and leave, good talk Mom, very scarring." Astrid stuttered out, bowing her head and waving slightly as she made her way back towards Hiccup, with a visual shudder.

* * *

Hiccup chuckled at the conversation, glancing at Snotlout, who's father reacted similarly, not showing a lot of emotion as was the Viking way, a light clasp of his father's hand and a quick nod and the three that would be leaving were done.

Hiccup got to his feet, glancing to his father seated at the large seat across the hearth, Stoick got to his feet and lifted his mug, the hall fell silent and lifted their own drinks directing his attention to the group "To Hiccup, Astrid and Snotlout! The Future Heroes of Berk, may stories be written of their triumphs and songs sung in their names, let Odin above know that his halls will open to some of the greatest Vikings of any age!"

The hall chorused the speech with deafeningly loud roars, slamming their fists into the tables as they cheered and hollered.

Hiccup bowed his head quickly, Snotlout and Astrid did the same before the three rounded on their heels and left the Great Hall, Astrid and Snotlout followed after Hiccup as he gestured for them to fall in behind him, they made their way back to the forge.

"I want to keep our movements a secret for as long as possible," Hiccup explained as he moved into his back room and emerged carrying one of the three objects that had been hidden under the sheets "I put a lot of thought into the best methods and decided we are also a team," He paused as he went back into the room, retrieving the last two before he finished "Consider these, our team uniform."

He ripped the sheets free, three sets of differently colored armor stared at them, identical in design to Hiccup's suit, that had been patched and repainted to look brand new.

He gestured Astrid to the centre, an armor of stark white, a blue insignia that matched the one of Toothless's tail fin on the right side of the chest, the helmet lacked the scar in the eye that Hiccup's had and she frowned at it a moment before removing her dagger, Hiccup lifted a brow in confusion as she slashed down the eye, carving an identical scar into the side of her helmet and nodding in acceptance "There, uniforms all have to be the same you know."

"That's right," Snotlout announced holding his hand out, Astrid placed her dagger in his hand and he made another identical incision in the helmet to match the other two, his suit was also the same, measured to fit him properly, but it was a deep red and the insignia was a bright gold "A real uniform if I'd ever seen one." He agreed.

"Alright guys, gets your dragons, it's time we go." Hiccup ordered, the pair nodded, retrieving the armor quickly they belted it on Astrid left the helmet curved under her arm, Snotlout pulled it on and strode out of the forge, Astrid stepped out lightly as Hiccup mounted Toothless, Astrid glanced at Ghost a moment, then shook her head and moved to turn away.

Stormfly's chirp caught her attention, Astrid's eyes widened in surprise as Stormfly dropped her saddle at Astrid's feet and nudged towards Ghost "Stormfly, you're my dragon." Astrid argued.

Stormfly nudged again and squawked at her humans stubbornness, Astrid glanced at Ghost, looking up at Toothless and Astrid's protests died in her throat "Fine, just this once, you know you are going to regret this." Astrid jeered at her dragon, the reptile tilted her head and squawked again.

Astrid approached Ghost slowly, saddle in her hands, Ghost's blue eye narrowed on her for a moment before dilating and calming, the Night Fury eyed the saddle and glanced at Toothless, noticing the device was much the same she lowered slightly to allow Astrid to place it on her.

Stormfly stood a small distance back and watched calmly "I entrust her to you now Ghost."

Ghost's eyes locked on Stormfly for an extended period of time "I'll keep her safe, you have my word."

Stormfly inclined her head and chirped.

Snotlout and Hookfang glided over and hovered beside Toothless as Astrid climbed atop Ghost's back "Alright, let's go traumatize some Berserkers!" Astrid shouted in a war cry.

The three dragons shot a quick blast into the air, they exploded in unison, painting the sky in brilliant hues of purple, blue and orange as the dragons chorused their agreements.

* * *

 **A/N: This is the moment I am veering off of cannon, not entirely, but most of it will be completely original from now on, there are a number of reasons, as far as what will still exist in this fiction and what won't well…you'll just have to wait to find out won't you? Heh.**

 **P.S: This chapter ended up being delayed because of Overwatch, if you've been living under a rock and haven't heard of it, you should prolly look it up, the game is fricken amazing, also, I want that rock.**

 **Replierinos:**

 **midnightsky0612: Hoe don't do it?**

 **Shadowspirit020: So, you're still here huh? :P, I'm kidding of course your reviews are always appreciated, I don't know if I'd call it a twist or just a fast forward, The Berserker's always become enemies of Berk, I just didn't see the need for the trickery in the beginning.**

 **martindino123: I'm sorry for taking so long . I'm pretty sure this one was only like a week , so I mean, improvements and stuff, I'm sorry to inform you that I won't be doing RTTE, I may do a side story/continuation when the series finishes so I can be sure of how much I want to use, but as of now, after DOB it will be HTTYD2 and then the big old complete, Screaming Death? No Screaming Death? You'll have to wait and see, Heh, I feel really evil now.**

 **gajeel-of-iron: Glad you enjoyed it!**

 **dark shadey01: For whatever reason, absolutely hates the dot in your name and deletes the whole thing every time I try to reply to you, I am kind sorry about the late as hell birthday wish, the joys of life slithering in out of nowhere to RKO my ass, yeah, outdated meme jokes ahoy!**

 **Carl Solo: Yes, you can have faith in all of these stories getting finished, glad you have been enjoying so far!**

 **OechsnerC: Thanks very much, hope you enjoy this one as well!**

 **Fireflame159: I don't know, maybe we will huh? What's it to you? :P**

 **EagleDragon15: You could also call yourself FreedomDragon15, people would still know what you were talking about, although in seriousness, I'm really glad you enjoy this story.**

 **: So, you could say you dived headfirst into the dragon nip that is this story? Heh, I'm glad you think so highly on my writing, I work hard to make it good, this one is kinda short as well, but the next one will definitely be much longer, cause action, I do hope my earlier explanation explained why I didn't have Toothless interfere, to further elaborate on it, Toothless considers, Hiccup an 'Alpha' and is aware Dagur is also an 'Alpha' among humans and the fight was treated as a challenge between the two, that would be how I explain it. As for the arrow, yeah, badass points, not really any other reason…Well, sufficiently surprised?**

 **UnbreakableWarrior: As always? You flatter me sir (ma'am?) But seriously, I'm glad you enjoyed!**

 **CerebralCortex31: Well, it's not a Mona Lisa, but I am proud of it :P Glad you enjoyed.**

 **Iris Patton: Yes, the update was slow, forgive me already geez, I'm glad you are enjoying my take on Hiccup and I hope you continue to enjoy the story!**

 **The dragon1010: Of course, I respond to all my reviews, either here or by PM, well, I usually try to go for about five thousand word chapters as a benchmark, but these last two have been just over three thousand, so I felt a little explanation was in order, I am glad you have been enjoying though!**

 **And so with that, I hope you guys have enjoyed this chapter and I will see you guys in the next chapter, peace!**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: As we continue into this story I'd like to draw attention the fact that this story has recently broken the 300 follows mark! YOU GUYS ARE ACTUALLY CRAZY! I can honestly say that fan fiction has always been a simple hobby to burn extra creative energy and I am glad my friend nudged (Threw me headlong.) Into the activity and I really enjoy it, but I mean, 300, is just never a number I thought I'd see associated with my stories, I don't think there bad it's just like…whoa, you know? Okay, I'll stop droning on and let you get the chapter!**

* * *

A month had passed since Hiccup had set out with Astrid and Snotlout, a month into the war and the three had lost count of the amount of ships they had destroyed, the men they had killed, the people they had saved, in that time Berk had continued to strengthen its defensive and Fishlegs had developed a method of using Terrible Terror's to send messages, allowing for Hiccup and his team to be kept updated on how things were going at home.

But there was always another ship, Dagur's raiding parties seemed endless.

Hiccup peered over the edge of Toothless's flank, Dagur had begun splitting the ships he used to raid early on in the month, forcing the three to split up to effectively cut off Dagur's supply chain, one raid ship floated silently many leagues below him.

"Alright bud, just like always." Hiccup rubbed at the back of Toothless's neck calmly and the dragon snorted as Hiccup drew back, looping them over to dive straight down towards the ship, Hiccup clipped Toothless tail so the dragon could fly on his own as the Night Fury's wings began to whistle, the Berserker's heads snapped up, realizing far too late that the enemy was upon them.

Toothless drew back and darted over the ship as Hiccup rolled off his dragons back towards the front of the ship, he drew his sword as he fell and planted his feet against the lookouts chest as he slashed across the man's neck, sending him hurtling to the deck below.

Hiccup flipped back and landed lightly at the bow of the ship, changing his grip on his weapon he lunged forward, he deflected an axe that went high and cut low, whirling around and driving his sword through another Berserkers chest, as the man toppled forward Hiccup rolled over his back, slashing up to silence the man's scream of pain.

Hiccup heard the sound of crossbow's being loaded and he stepped into a quick spin, launching a set of small daggers into the archers exposed necks as he continued over the deck of the ship in a quick rush, never taking an engagement that would hold him for longer than a few seconds, as he reached the end of the ship he leapt up and landed on the edge, he ripped his daggers free of them downed archers and slid them back into the sheaths on his upper arm, the remaining Berserkers moved towards him slowly as the whistle of a Night Fury reached their ears, Toothless sped just above the water and fired a powerful blast into the centre of the ship, blowing either end of the ship into the air, Hiccup rolled in the air and landed atop his dragons back lightly.

Hiccup rubbed his dragons neck affectionately as the beast warbled at him, the boy took a moment to peer at the suns position "There won't be any more raids today." He voiced more to himself "Let's head back Toothless."

The dragon snorted as it rose into the clouds and continued at a smooth pace.

* * *

Hiccup was surprised when he wasn't the first one back to their semi-permanent camp, a small set of islands in the centre of the south archipelago that provided then with a constant supply of fresh water and moderate protection from outside attacks due to the number of islands, if at any point a Berserker ship was to somehow track them to one of the islands they would simply move to another a distance away, the Berserkers would check all the islands but the time it took them to get back to their ships gave the three riders more than enough time to conceal themselves on the next island.

Toothless landed with a light thud and Hiccup dismounted, approaching Snotlout with a quick wave, Snotlout inclined his head in a quick greeting and turned back to the fish he was cooking over a small fire.

"I didn't expect to see you here this early." Hiccup noted as he settled down.

Snotlout shrugged "Hookfang and I ran our entire round, found three raid ships in total and circled for another few hours, when the sun started to go down we came back."

"I'm not sure if the raid numbers are decreasing or if Dagur's got some kind of a plan." Hiccup voiced in concern.

"Knowing Dagur he's planning something," Snotlout snorted removing one of the fish and tossing it to Hiccup who caught it with a thankful nod as he bit into the side "I doubt it's going to continue to be as easy as this."

"That's for sure," Hiccup nodded "We need information and we don't even have a method of getting a hold of it."

"Yeah, the only person who can freely move between all the tribes is Johann," Snotlout threw his head back in a laugh "I doubt he'd be useful as a spy."

Hiccup stared at his cousin in surprise "He might not be a spy, but if he's just passing along rumors, we might be able to pick up on something."

"Trusting rumors isn't a good way to go about fighting," Snotlout pointed out "And if Dagur gets wind of the plan he can just have his men spread some false information."

Hiccup ran a hand through his hair "I know, bringing Johann into this isn't even something I want to do, but we are very limited in our options."

Toothless whined and Hiccup glanced at his dragon, the Night Fury was watching the skies expectantly, waiting for Ghost and Astrid to return, a habit the black dragon had gained over the course of their time in the south. The sound drew Hiccup's attention to the horizon, the sun was dipping incredibly low and Astrid had never been this late before.

"Lout, how's your night flying these days?" Hiccup asked as he finished his fish and tossed the stick into the fire.

"Good enough." Snotlout responded as he got to his feet, tossing his own stick into the fire.

"Good, were going out." Hiccup ordered calmly as he pulled his helmet on, Snotlout followed suit and jumped atop Hookfang's back.

The force of the pair launching off the beach snuffed the fire they left behind.

"It's all well and good to go looking for Astrid, but how are we going to find them?" Snotlout called over the rushing wind as they rose above the clouds for cover.

"Toothless and Ghost are mated remember," Hiccup called back and Snotlout glanced at the Night Fury and nodded "Do your thing bud."

Toothless shifted his head slightly and opened his mouth, whilst Hiccup and Snotlout heard nothing, Toothless turned his head in answer to something neither could hear and Hiccup allowed his dragon to guide them much like how they had discovered the Dragon's nest.

* * *

Astrid watched through cracks in the clouds, making sure to stay above the large number of Berserker ships she had discovered, it seemed like the raiding parties had decided to stop splitting up and were going to make an attack during the night, two things the Berserkers hadn't done before, fortunately or unfortunately for Astrid, depending on how you looked at it, she had spotted them before she decided to turn in and return to camp.

She also decided to bank the hunch that Hiccup would figure out something was wrong and use Toothless to find them, somehow, okay she was still working on her plan, but seeing where the Berserker's went was step one and that was going perfectly!

Ghost shifted her head slightly and Astrid frowned as the dragon opened its mouth but no sound made it to her ears, Astrid rubbed the Night Fury's neck affectionately, mistaking the action for the dragons tiredness "I'm sorry girl, just a little bit longer."

Ghost snorted in response, minorly irritated she could speak human and try to prevent the girl from doing something reckless, which all of the human teenagers she had met seemed so fond of doing.

Astrid heard a sharp whistle and she glanced up, seeing the familiar shape of Toothless glide down beside her, Snotlout on her opposite flank, she suppressed the urge to sigh in relief and gestured for the other two to look down, Hiccup nodded his head and Snotlout waved in a gesture of 'got it'.

"What do we do?" Snotlout asked, taking care to not shout too loudly.

Hiccup looked at the ever increasing number of ships, now just above ten Berserker ships sailed beneath them silently.

"I say we commandeer a vessel." Hiccup voiced calmly

The other teens stared at him as if he'd grown a second head and he flashed his palms in a motion telling them to let him explain "It looks like they are all joining the main ship in the middle, so if we take it we can set a nice trap for any other ships that are on their way here."

"Okay, but how do you plan to do that?!" Snotlout demanded "We are three people and three dragons!"

"First we skewer as many ships as we can from the backs of our dragon, I know Toothless and I can get three relatively quickly."

"Ghost and I can do three quickly as well." Astrid voiced calmly, petting the dragons neck again.

"I can get two," Snotlout voiced tightly "Hookfang's flame isn't as explosive as yours."

"So, we destroy eight ships and board the remaining four, if we can buy Toothless thirty seconds he can circle around and take the forth ship out, then we just need to deal with the remaining ships men." Hiccup voiced calmly

"Roger that." Astrid settled low into her saddle and glanced at Snotlout, the boy hesitated another moment before nodding.

"Let's send some Berserkers scurrying back to Dagur!" He voiced loudly as the three dropped out of the sky, Hiccup rolled right and Snotlout left as Astrid dove straight down.

* * *

Deciding to move from the rear ships to the front, Hiccup swept around, the Black Night fury perfectly invisible against the water as they sped along the surface, Hiccup could see the guards straining their eyes into the dark to attempt to see, Hiccup gave Toothless a quick pat on the neck and the dragon opened its maw, the familiar hiss of its fire building in his throat before Toothless rolled and released three, blasts of fire into the sides of the rear ships, the boats exploded, sending splinters of wood into the air as Hiccup dismounted Toothless's shadow and slid along the deck of the ship in the centre, men shouted and alarms began blaring as Hiccup heard the sound three more ships being obliterated and spotted Astrid dropping down on the deck of another ship a small distance from him.

Snotlout's method was a little different from his teammates, Hookfang hovered above the water quietly before letting ou a growl and spinning around like a top, Snotlout held on tightly as the dragon ignited himself and slammed straight through the side of two ships, literally boring a hole through the side of the two vessels before Hookfang leveled out and Snotlout dropped from his dragons back and landed on the deck of a ship with a heavy thud.

"Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup," Hiccup froze at the familiar voice "You really never do disappoint do you?"

Hiccup rolled his shoulders calmly and drew his sword "I'm not going to let you go again," His eyes narrowed as he growled "Dagur!"

Dagur drew his own sword and rushed forward, a few of his men flanking his sides, Hiccup darted forward and dropped low driving his foot into Dagur's chin and sending the Berserker chieftain airborne, Hiccup spun in the air as Dagur's men moved to run him through with spears, the blades grazing passed Hiccups armor and driving into the allies, Hiccup slammed his feet into the chests of the wounded men and sent them toppling over the sides of the ship as Dagur spun around a landed a small distance from him.

"Is this the best you can offer me Dagur?" Hiccup demanded pointing his sword at him.

Dagur's response was to throw his head back and laugh loudly.

* * *

Astrid sidestepped a sword strike and drove her axe into the man's chest harshly before launching into the air and wrenching the weapon free and kicking off his chest at the same time, the blonde frowned and looked around, she knew from years of experience that there should have been way more men aboard this ship, she moved to one of the trap doors leading below the deck of the ship, she pried it open from a distance with her axe, being careful of any traps that might have been set up, when nothing immediately jumped out at her she peered over the lip of the trap door.

Barrels lined the hold beneath her, she frowned and dropped into the hold, removing one of the lids and lifting the substance inside, the black rock-like substance in the barrels reeked of sulphur and charcoal and he eyes widened when she heard a loud cackling laugh.

She leapt from the hold and her head snapped to the sky as a single arrow flew from the deck of the only remaining ship that the teens hadn't boarded, the crossbow bolt was lit on fire and Astrid launched towards the edge of the boat as the projectile fell through the trap door she had opened moments ago.

There was a moment's pause as the powder sizzled before the boat erupted in a loud explosion, sending chunks of wood scattering into the air.

* * *

Snotlout glanced at the explosion for a moment, recognizing the fire as not that of any of the dragons the three rode he rolled forward and drove his sword into the remaining Berserker on the ship, the vessel he was on had a large opening in the centre, a iron grate placed of the top of it, he could see the barrels from where he was standing and he wasted no time checking the contents, he launched himself off the edge of the boat breaking the surface of the water as the boat exploded behind him, he stayed beneath the water and swam towards the wreckage of one of the boats they had destroyed before, with the ship turn in half he could look inside the holds with relative ease, only a handful of barrels actually remained in the holds, the rest having already sunk or began sinking towards the bottom of the ocean.

He broke the surface of the water to breath before diving down again, the water was dark, but thanks to the fires of the ships above him he could make out a few shapes, including one he recognized a ways off, he swam towards it as quickly as he could.

* * *

The first explosion drew Hiccup's attention, his eyes widened as the boat shattered, he moved to jump off the boat and Dagur intercepted him Hiccup got his shield up in time but the Berserker chief pressed against him heavily, preventing him from moving for the moment "That's right, you already know which one of you landed on that ship right?"

Hiccup's vision clouded as Dagur slammed a punch into the side of his head and he staggered away, his arms slackened and his shoulders moved with every breath he took.

Astrid had been on that boat.

His mind repeated the same thing over and over again, like a haunting mantra.

"You fell so perfectly into my trap I thought for a moment you might have already known!" Dagur cackled loudly

Hiccup's eyes shifted to the man in front of him, barely registering Dagur was actually standing in front of him.

"But from that reaction," Dagur's laughter actually grew louder "You clearly had no idea, I'd say you'd be able to honor her with a grand funeral, but I doubt there's much left of her to honor!" Dagur roared loudly.

Hiccup's grip tightened on the hilt of his sword.

"The best part is _you're the_ leader!" Dagur continued "You fell for the trap, you made the plan, _you_ killed her yourself!"

"Be quiet." Hiccup's voice was masked with a malice Dagur had never heard before, the Berserker's laughter died in his throat as Hiccup lifted his head enough to glare at Dagur.

The scar on Hiccup's mask was clearly visible, teary eyes glared at Dagur with a hatred the Berserker chief had never seen before, Dagur paled slightly and took an unconscious fearful step back.

Dagur's frustration at his own fear won over and he stepped forward "You've always been soft Hiccup! It was your _weakness_ that killed her!"

Hiccup didn't even register the second explosion "Weakness?" He asked dangerously.

Dagur licked at his lips and took a breath before he answered "Your idiotic kindness! You wouldn't kill a dragon! You dragged Berk into a war they had no hope of winning! _Your_ weakness killed your friends!"

"Then," Hiccup shifted his stance calmly "If I were to abandon that kindness you wouldn't even have a chance?"

Dagur took another step back as Hiccup focused his glare on the chief, Hiccup drew his sword around and hovered it at his eye level, the fires of the other ships danced on his eyes as they unfocused "I'm going to kill you Dagur." The levelness of the tone was the most frightening thing about it as Hiccup launched forward, the wood beneath his feet groaned and cracked.

Dagur barely managed to get his sword up in time to block the strike as Hiccup drove his fist into Dagur's nose, the thing cracked with a loud snap and Dagur stumbled back, clutching at his nose with a groan of pain.

He didn't have time to dwell on it as Hiccup stepped forward, completely abandoning his usual stance that left him at least somewhat guarded, he slashed down, Dagur blocked the strike and drew his dagger, slicing across Hiccup's arm as the armored boy rotated quickly and slammed his foot into Dagur's chest.

Dagur heard the sound of his own ribs cracking as he was slammed against the cabin he usually slept in, the wood behind him broke and cracked inwards, blood flew from Dagur's mouth as Hiccup walked towards him slowly and deliberately, Dagur grit his teeth as he tried to rip himself free from the wall of wood.

It soon became apparent that Dagur didn't have the strength to do so as Hiccup glared down at him "Get away from me!" Dagur roared fearfully.

"Your weakness is your overwhelming stupidity." Hiccup responded flatly, Dagur's attention was pulled above Hiccup's head and Hiccup turned to glance at the object calmly, he spotted Hookfang spiraling towards the back of the ship and his eyes widened as the dragon slammed into the back of the ship, sending Hiccup hurtling into the air as the ship was turned into a massive seesaw.

* * *

Toothless swept over the ship and grabbed Hiccup by the collar, the next thing Hiccup became aware of was the sand of their campsite beneath him, he pushed himself to his feet slowly.

"Good to see your awake." Snotlout greeted jovially.

Hiccup's eyes narrowed dangerously and he grabbed his cousin by the neck and lifted him into the air "What the hell do you think you were doing?!"

"I was-" Snotlout attempted to croak out.

"You SAVED Dagur?! The entire war would have been _over_ had I have killed him!" Hiccup roared

"Hiccup-" Snotlout attempted to interject.

"No, no, no. You listen well Snotlout because I am sick and tired of you, he _killed_ Astrid! Get in my way again and I will remove you of the burden of the weight of your gods damned head!" Hiccup threw his cousin across the beach.

Toothless nudged at Hiccup's hand and the boy rounded on the dragon in confusion and surprise, Toothless gestured with his head towards the fire, Hiccup's eyes trailed in the direction slowly, lying on a small sleeping mat, still covered in the armor he had made for her, she appeared to be sleeping peacefully, he could see her chest moving up and down from the distance he was at, he walked over slowly, his shadow fell across her face and she shifted uncomfortably when he moved and the sun hit her face again.

Relief washed over him like a wave and his legs gave out as he fell beside her, palms clenching handfuls of sand, he pulled of his helmet as a half cry half laugh broke through his throat, a tear drop fell against her cheeks and her eyes opened slowly.

"Astrid," He breathed out shakily, wiping the tear with his thumb "I'm…. _really_ glad your okay."

The blonde frowned at him and Hiccup felt his heart beat hard against his chest when she finally responded.

"I'm sorry….but…who are you?"

* * *

 **A/N: DUN DUN DUN! I do hope this chapter managed to keep you at the edge of your seats regardless of the fact that it is a little predictable, well at least until the end if It didn't well, I hope it at least entertained you! Also, I am aware of the hatred for my cliffhangers and I currently have no plans on delaying the next chapter for life stuff, but I do need to let this ending stew for a little otherwise it's just not really a cliffhanger, so the update will come soon, hehe.**

 **Replies!**

 **:**

 **Well, can you at least tell me where you found the rock? I could really use one! I do actually know about 'Burning' I haven't actually started it yet, but it is on the long list of fictions I need to get into, so hearing good things about it is always nice.**

 **Do not be concerned, I have a whole plan regarding Stormfly and Astrid, this was just the beginning of a much large sub-plot that I will be writing out as the story progresses, the dialogue between Ghost and Toothless while it was fore-shadowy, in** _ **this**_ **story I don't plan on splitting them apart or anything like that, to be honest I only realized how that sequence played out after I had written in, I am quite proud of it, but I realize how it could easily send that message so I am considering altering it a bit.**

 **Astrid's mother shipping them is inspired by my own mother, who has been shipping me with a childhood friend….for….fricken….ever, granted she has never used the term 'shipping' but just ugh.**

 **Huzah for the sort of not really break then? Wish my teachers would go on strike for awhile, let me breath for a week without four new assignments to do, that'd be great.**

 **UnbreakableWarrior:**

 **Well buckle your seatbelt bucko cause a whole lot of Hiccstrid is coming, not in this chapter, or the next one prolly, but it's coming.**

 **OechsnerC:**

 **Neither, but I actually plan on fully revealing all of the reasoning's later so I don't want to spoil it just yet.**

 **EagleDragon15:**

 **Yeah, I probably wouldn't have made the joke at all but my brain was just like 'You gotta' and who am I to argue that logic? I am really glad you enjoy my portrayal of Hiccup, his character in this fiction has been one of my favorite things about writing it so I'm glad it's been being so well received.**

 **Angel-the-hedge:**

 **Thank you very much, I'm glad you're enjoying them!**

 **Carl Solo:**

 **As always I'm glad you're enjoying the story, as of right now I have a few ideas for my next stories but nothing entirely concrete as of yet, so I am just focusing on the stories I have up right now and working on them, but who knows what I'll do after I finish this fiction, I am quite fond of the Viking Era myself so we will see what happens.**

 **Hypernova 5.0:**

 **Well, I mean, I'm pretty sure sufficient ass was kicked for both sides in this chapter :P**

 **midnightsky0612:**

 **Traumatize all the Berserkers!**

 **CerebralCortex31:**

 **I don't think your sadness for Stormfly is genuine, I'm watching you o.o heh :P.**

 **Khizar:**

 **Overwatch for life man.**

 **As I mentioned before I am looking at that sequence, it was meant to be a sort of nice little bonding moment for Ghost and Toothless and then it sort of got all fore-shadowy and that wasn't really my intention, so I don't know if I should leave it or not.**

 **Also, Weird is definitely the best possible thing to be, have you** _ **seen**_ **normal people!? Ugh, amateurs :P**

 **Shadowspirit020: Well more Hiccstrid is coming, I was happy with the scene in the last chapter though am glad you are still enjoying this story!**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Yo, it's been a few says how you guys holding up? I think I've let the cliffhanger stew long enough, so I won't keep you guys here any longer, enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"Come on Astrid," Hiccup breathed out raggedly "It's me, this isn't funny."

The blonde sat up abruptly "I'm pretty sure I've never seen you before in my life."

"Astrid, this is no time for a bad joke." Snotlout shot from a safe distance away, mostly avoiding his cousins wrath.

"You can't be…"Astrid frowned at him "Snotlout?"

"What you remember me but not him?!" Snotlout retorted angrily.

Astrid's head turned back to Hiccup "I've never seen him before."

Hiccup stumbled back to his feet, a few steps away from Astrid, her breath hitched at his facial expression "Astrid, please." He pleaded his eyes brimming with a flicker of light.

She stared at him silently, why did he looked betrayed? Why did Snotlout say she knew him, she was positive she'd never seen him. She looked around herself "Where are we? What happened to Berk?"

"Oh, Berk's fine, we've been on the frontline's fighting a fricken war against _Dagur_!" Snotlout shouted.

"Dagur as in the Berserker Chief's son? Aren't we allies?" Astrid asked clearly confused.

Snotlout's face lit suddenly as if an idea occurred to him "What do you remember?"

"There was a dragon raid a few days ago, there's some weird rumor going around that some crazy guys been attacking merchants in the forest." Astrid voiced simply, cocking her head to the side "Why?"

"So you don't even remember the dragons." Snotlout ran a hand through his hair, Hookfang padded up behind him and Astrid jumped to her feet.

"Snotlout look out!" She paused half way between Snotlout and where she had been laying down.

Snotlout rubbed the Nightmare's nose affectionately "Astrid, Berk's allied with the dragons now, that 'crazy guy' is him, Hiccup Haddock, Son of Stoick the Vast, the next damned chief, we beat the queen at the dragons nest and he tamed a Night Fury and we became a group that ride dragons and that's why we are at war with the Berserker's."

Astrid turned to look at the other boys back, he was hunched over, still as a statue "Lout and… _you_ ," He practically hissed as his eyes fell on her "We are going back to Berk."

Snotlout shifted uncomfortably "Something happen?"

A blue Terrible Terror perched itself on Hiccup's arm, in his other hand was a small piece of paper "Something, they aren't sure what, we need to head back."

Snotlout nodded, Astrid's eyes widened as she watched Hiccup, he scratched the Terror under the chin and gave his large black dragon, which she assumed was the Night Fury an affectionate rub on the head, he spoke to the dragon softly, she felt something rough nuzzle against her hand and she jerked it away and jumped a few feet away from the grey dragon.

She couldn't recognize it, but it was similar in appearance to the Night Fury, the colors being the only difference "Your…mine?"

The dragon snorted and inclined it's head, clearly irritated, the saddle on its back was simple enough to figure out, she felt familiarity when she sat atop the dragons back, she looked at the other two, her eyes fell over Hiccup who kept his back to her, her heart beat hard against her chest and her eyes grew dry.

The look on his face when he accepted that she had no memory of him was haunting, her own stomach turned uncomfortably and her chest ached painfully, she grit her teeth and narrowed her eyes.

She was a Hofferson, if she lost her memories she's simply take them back, not that she had any idea how she was going to do that, but if there was a way, no matter how hard it was, she'd do it.

His face swam through the fog of her mind again and she shook it away, she wouldn't gain anything worrying about him.

Hiccup kept his gaze focused firmly forward, he wouldn't accept something like this, Astrid Hofferson drowned in that gods forsaken ocean, the shell behind him just _looked_ like her, that was it.

"I'm leaving the flight to you bud." Hiccup gave his dragon a light pat on the neck and tightened the straps around his legs, allowing him to lay against Toothless back without fear of falling off, he let his eyes drift close.

"This had better be for real Astrid." Snotlout growled at her, an anger she certainly wasn't used to him displaying.

"I swear Snotlout, I can't remember any of what you said, I know one thing for sure though," Snotlout lifted an eyebrow at her and she continued "He meant a lot to me before didn't he?"

Snotlout frowned and nodded his head.

"I also meant a lot to him right?" Astrid asked

Snotlout nodded again.

"My mind may not remember the details, but my feelings haven't forgotten anything, I'll find a way to beat this Snotlout, I promise." Astrid finished resolutely, eyes focusing on the horizon in front of her.

That seemed to appease Snotlout somewhat, he rolled his shoulders calmly and settled on the back of his dragon.

* * *

Fishlegs watched the horizon, squinting against the sun to try and get any extra information, he knew Hiccup would have received the message by now, so it was only a matter of time before the group returned to Berk, but he had a bad feeling and there had been a lot of bad omens around the village recently, it worried him.

He breathed an audible sigh of relief when a familiar black dot appeared on the horizon, he turned and shouted to Tuffnut.

"Hiccup's on his way, inform the chief!" He called

Tuffnut saluted haphazardly "Why do I have to do it?"

"If your gonna salute don't complain!" Fishlegs snapped.

"On it." Tuffnut responded before darting off.

It only took around five minutes for the team to touch down in the square.

Hiccup dismounted Toothless but made no movement to take off his helmet, Fishlegs frowned, it was almost like he was hiding behind it.

"Hiccup!" He called rushing over to meet him.

"Sorry Legs, I'm tired we flew all night can it wait?" His voice was hoarse and his tone was almost pleading, Fishlegs frowned out of concern, Hiccup's eyes looked almost dead, similar to they had when he had first gotten the prosthetic.

"Sure," Fishlegs nodded with a quick smile "The village'll still be here in a few hours, I'll make sure of that."

Hiccup nodded gratefully and moved passed Fishlegs, giving the blonde boy a light pat on the shoulder, he didn't speak as he moved passed him towards his house.

Fishlegs rounded on Snotlout and Astrid, the latter was looking around the village in obvious curiosity, as I seeing everything for the first time in her life "You…" He trailed off, looking at Astrid for a few seconds.

"I don't remember any of this." Astrid confirmed his suspicion strongly and Fishlegs ran a hand through his hair.

"This is bad," He groaned "I need Hiccup now, the village can't afford to have him mope around like this, we won't last."

"What's going on?" Snotlout asked quickly.

"Something big," Fishlegs responded flatly "We don't have a hope in hell if Hiccup doesn't help."

"I'll help any way I can, so at least fill us in." Astrid voiced simply, despite her head throbbing painfully, Berk was her home, that much she _did_ remember and she certainly wouldn't let it be destroyed.

Fishlegs nodded "You guys should follow me then."

* * *

After Fishlegs gathered a few supplies in case of an emergency and the group set off, finding themselves in the caves that ran underneath Berk, Fishlegs paused and lit a lantern as they walked through the murky darkness, the small pool of light being the only source of light after they made a few turns.

"So, what are we doing in here?" Snotlout asked

Fishlegs lifted his hand and the lanterns light spread onto the roof of the cavern around them "That," A few set's of smaller holes spread around a single much larger one "They're Whispering Death holes from what I have gathered."

"Whispering Death's haven't been on Berk before to my memory." Astrid responded.

"Exactly, which means someone _put_ them here." Fishlegs replied calmly.

"Dagur…or Alvin?" Snotlout asked.

"Dagur is against allying with dragons, my monies on Alvin but that isn't the most pressing concern, juvenile Whispering Death's aren't all that dangerous and we as Dragon Riders could easily lead them off the island, it's the bigger hole I'm more worried about." Fishlegs explained calmly

"Six holes, six riders," Astrid counted simply "So you planned to have Hiccup deal with the largest one?"

"He is the best rider and our leader, he'd likely volunteer." Fishlegs answered simply.

"We can't rely on Hiccup at the moment, we need to do something about this ourselves," Snotlout countered simply "Hiccup will come around, he always does but we don't have the luxury of waiting for that to happen."

Astrid watched the Jorgenson out of the corner of her eyes, the Snotlout she remembered was aggressive, stupid and completely devoid of anything even slightly respectful, she wondered how the other teens had changed in the time she didn't remember.

Above all of that, she wondered who Hiccup Haddock was.

* * *

Hiccup stared at the roof of his home without really seeing it, he sighed and grabbed his helmet, pulling it over his head and getting up off his bed, Toothless lifted his head in curiosity and Hiccup waved him back down "I'm just going out a bit, bud."

Toothless snorted and laid his head back down, Hiccup chuckled and glanced at his sword before shrugging and leaving out the back door and into the forest beyond the village.

He passed the spot he had once found Toothless, the forest having repaired most of the damage that had been inflicted by the dragons crash, he scaled back into the tree tops like he used too, stretching his arms out on either side of him as he balanced on thinner branches towards the top of the canopy, he found the clearing Astrid used to practice her axe throwing in, one of the first places he had ever spoken to her properly, he could practically see them sitting there, when he told her he wouldn't let her hit him, the trees in the clearing still held a few of the deeper gouges in the trees around him.

He ended in the cove where he had first met Toothless, placed the saddle on him, learn to fly with him, befriended him…the place he first kissed Astrid, his hand traced the scratch on his helmet over the left eye, she'd also given him this.

He eventually found himself on the edge of Berk, overlooking the ocean, it had gotten late, the sun was now dipping towards the horizon, painting the sky in brilliant hues of orange, blue and red, the hastily constructed grave marker he had made for Vonor, he traced the markings with his finger.

"Well I'm back here again," He voiced loudly "Feeling all sorry for myself again." He half chuckled.

"I finally made my place in Berk, forged it with my own hands, just like you used to tell me too," His voice cracked dangerously "I was so determined to protect it, I really thought I could do it."

His exhaled shakily "She completely forgot about me…What am I supposed to do about this? It's not something I can fix is it?! Memories aren't like swords, I can't just put something over the top of meld them back together! Please, tell me what the hell am I supposed to do?!"

His fingers dug into his legs painfully, he slammed his fist into the ground and just screamed, his frustration, anger, hurt, he screamed until his throat burned and he couldn't summon the energy to scream anymore.

He felt a little bit better, he could actually imagine the response, he could see Vonor in front of him, pacing a few steps left and right, she'd always take an extra step left when she figured something out, she'd prop her cane up on her shoulder and grin happily "You haven't done everything in your power if your still alive right?"

He could hear the old croaky voice, the chuckle she'd finish it with, every little detail, she'd tap him on the shoulder after that and say "One day, you might well find something that really is beyond your power to fix, but the moment you truly believe you are powerless you lose everything."

Hiccup rose to his feet and took a deep breath, he'd decided on what he was going to do, he smirked as he left the clearing, pausing before he reentered the forest and casting a glance back at the small grave marker "Thanks, I'll be sure to come back soon, I have to keep you updated right?"

The wind blew passed him in response and he continued into the forest quickly, Fishleg's called them back because the village was in trouble and _that_ came first, he'd already wasted enough time being depressed.

* * *

Astrid massaged the top of her head and closed her eyes, leaning against one of the many trees that surrounded her, they had split up and begun searching around the forest for other Whispering Death holes, trying to figure out exactly where the dragons were headed on the island, but her head had been relentlessly pounding since she had woken up, she shook her head and pushed the pain to the back of her head as she pushed herself up to continue forward.

Her foot caught a root and she toppled forward, catching herself on her hands, the jar reverberated up her arms and she clicked her tongue and gritted her teeth, the ground in front of her cracked up, her eyes widened and she threw herself back as the ground burst upwards, Her vision blurred and she shook her head, the pain returning to the forefront of her mind with a vengeance, she bit her lip to stave off unconsciousness as her vision focused on the dragon in front of her.

It was still small, so fortunately for her it wasn't the thing that created the massive hole under Berk, but that didn't do much to comfort her as it roared at her, the darkened scales and small bat like wings on its back, it's incredibly number of teeth rotated around it's jaw relentlessly, it reminded her of a large eel, it's eyes were white and bulged out of the top of its head, but it clearly had no trouble seeing her.

It let out a screech and dived towards her, Astrid threw herself out of the way, the pounding in her head made her movements sloppy, she growled and looked for her axe, she found it resting on the ground on the opposite side of the Whispering Death, she got shakily to her feet trying and failing to ignore the pain in her head and the throbbing on her side.

She grit her teeth and charged forward, the Whispering Death recoiled in surprise before diving towards her, Astrid dropped down and slid underneath the dragon, she grabbed her axe and whirled around as it whipped its tail at her, her legs chose that moment to give out and she staggered forward as the set of spikes shot towards her.

Her eyes widened when a black blur slid passed her field of vision, two of the spikes reflected into the ground with a metallic clink, the third sound was definitely the sound of it striking the body and she winced as her eyes trailed up, she recognized the black armor, Hiccup turned his head enough to look down at her, she could tell he was smirking, although she wasn't entirely sure how she could tell since she could only see his eyes.

The sight of blood dripping to the ground caused her to speak "What are you doing!?"

"Sorry, right after I said I wouldn't get any more scars for you either," Hiccup chuckled, he pulled the spike from his side and winced "But I also decided I'd definitely protect you, so I guess this is part of that."

"I'm not some little girl you need to protect!" She shouted at him.

Hiccup braced against his shield as the Whispering Death charged him, he locked against the horn atop its nose and glared into the beasts eyes, locking his opposite hand against the shield he slammed up, throwing the whispering death backward into a tree, it let out a screech of pain and Hiccup pressed his free hand over his wound.

"I know that better than _anyone_ else," He responded flatly "You're the strongest, most amazing person I've ever met, I don't protect you because you _need_ me too, I protect you because I _want_ too."

"You don't need to go so far for me, I don't even remember you." Astrid voiced dejectedly.

Hiccup slammed down as the Whispering Death charged him again, the blow struck the dragon and it slammed it's head into the ground, it recoiled with another screech, the last of the sunlight caught the edge of Hiccup's shield and reflected into the Dragon's eyes, it blinked and shook it's head before slamming back into the ground, a few minutes passed until Hiccup was sure it had left and he slumped down on the tree next to Astrid.

"I don't care, that you've lost all your memories of me," Astrid's eyes widened and Hiccup grit his teeth and continued "I'm going to protect you until you get them back and if that doesn't work I'll just make new ones because whether you like it or not you belong to me and I have belonged to you since I met you."

Astrid's eyes widened again when he reached out and grabbed her by the collar of her armor, he pulled her forward gently and pressed his lips against hers firmly "So you better prepare yourself." He warned playfully as he pulled back and his head lulled back against the tree.

Astrid shook herself hard to break free of the slight shock, that was _too_ familiar, everything about it, she knew they had done that before, she pulled his helmet off quickly, his breathing was shallow and she frowned worriedly as she pulled off his chest piece and examined the wound, it wasn't that deep something like this shouldn't have knocked him out so quickly, she heard a quiet hiss and she turned around and frowned, something dripped off one of the spines that had been shot at Hiccup.

"Poison!" She exclaimed immediately, she looked back at the wound, it wasn't bleeding too profusely, but she'd attend to it just in case, infection was the biggest danger of small wounds like that, her hands shot to her belt immediately and she frowned.

She wasn't consciously aware she carried medical supplies, she shook the thought out of her head and mentally thanked herself for her foresight as she wrapped the wound, she tied a strip of cloth a little above the wound, hoping the tightness of the cloth would slow the flow of the poison.

"Hiccup Haddock, after a stunt like that you had better not die!" She growled at him as she tied his armor back on and grabbed his helmet, she looked around, she couldn't carry him and hope to get back to the village quickly.

The throbbing in her head abruptly stopped, her eyes widened slightly and she placed her hands over her mouth and let out a loud call, she recognized it from the dragon raids she remembered, the Nadder's call, it wasn't five minutes before the tree tops were split apart forcibly and a large blue Nadder landed in the clearing heavily.

"Stormfly!" Astrid paused, pieces of her memories started coming back to her, filling gaps in her mind abruptly, she grabbed Hiccup and pulled him over Stormfly's back, she climbed onto her dragons back and held Hiccup firmly "Come on girl." She gave the dragon a pet on the neck affectionately.

The familiar lurch of the take off seemed to break the floodgates that had been holding her memories back, she remembered the Outcast attack, when Hiccup had nearly died and her grip tightened on him, Dagur, the plan, the trap, she remembered hitting the water and feeling something slam into the back of her head, waking up on the beach.

Hiccup's face when she didn't remember him.

"I'm so sorry Hiccup." She grabbed him tightly as Stormfly descended into the village square.

"Astrid!" Fishlegs exclaimed as he rushed over to her "You were gone so long."

"I ran into one of the Whispering Death's Hiccup protected me but he got spiked, the spikes have poison on them," Astrid relayed quickly "I need to get him to Gothi."

Fishlegs nodded his head quickly, taking Hiccup and hoisting him up as if he was a small book, the two made their way into Gothi's hut quickly and Fishlegs placed Hiccup down on the bed and ran to get Gothi.

Astrid sank onto a nearby chair and watched Hiccup's face worriedly, she didn't know how dangerous the Whispering Death's venom was "I refuse to allow your last memory of me to be that."

Gothi and Fishlegs returned quickly, the old woman moved around the room, crushing a few different herbs quickly and placing them into a mug that she filled with water, Astrid propped Hiccup's head up and Fishlegs opened his mouth as Gothi poured the liquid into Hiccup's mouth, they let him back down and Astrid looked at Gothi worriedly.

"Whispering Death venom get's weaker the older they get, but it's not lethal, it's a paralytic poison, makes their prey pass out so they can be eaten easier, he isn't in any danger Astrid." Fishlegs reassured quickly.

Astrid sank into the chair with a sigh of relief "Good."

"Astrid you?" Fishlegs prompted with a raised eyebrow.

"I remember everything," Astrid smiled and tilted her head to the side "I just hope I can get Hiccup to forgive me."

"I'm sure he will, the moment he wakes up." Fishlegs reassured calmly as the two made their way out of the room, leaving Astrid alone with him.

"There's nothing to forgive anyway, it was my plan, my oversight and my fault." Hiccup voiced, one of his eyes cracked open to look at Astrid.

"You woke up pretty fast." She voiced simply.

"Call it stubbornness, I just wanted to make sure you were okay." Hiccup replied quickly.

"Hiccup I'm so sorry, I can't imagine what I would do if you completely forgot about me," Astrid began "I'm just…" She trailed off when Hiccup smiled at her.

"I'm glad to have you back Astrid." He countered happily.

"That's it? You're not going to be mad at me? Demand something?" Astrid asked quickly.

"Why would I do that?" Hiccup asked quizzically.

"I can't just leave it at that, I have to do something for you!" Astrid exclaimed quickly.

Hiccup frowned, taking a moment to think about it "Huh, well how's that there is something you can do for me after all."

"Name it." She voiced resolutely.

"Marry me Astrid, not after the war, not after we deal with the Whispering Deaths, as _soon_ as I can move." Hiccup responded with a wide grin.

"Is that all?" Astrid rested her forehead against his with a sigh of relief.

"What do you mean is that all? You're going to devote your entire life to me you know!?" He exclaimed with a chuckle.

"I'll allow it," She settled down beside him and nuzzled into his chest "As long as you devote the rest of yours to me, it's a give and take you know?"

Hiccup forced his neck to move to the side so he could place a light kiss on her forehead "My life already completely belonged to you anyway."

Hiccup slipped back into unconsciousness after that, Astrid followed him shortly after, Hiccup's body slowly regained its movement and his arm wrapped around Astrid's waist at some point during the night.

* * *

 **A/N: And that concludes this chapter, I think I used the appropriate amount of cheese, I'm quite happy with how it turned out, I wanted to focus this chapter not on Astrid who had forgotten her memories but on Hiccup who was forgotten, as I have lost my memories in the past, around the same time I lost most of the movement in my left leg actually, I also forgot a large period of my life, it was just gone, it'd be like reading a book but the middle is torn out and you just suddenly get to the ending without knowing how or why your there, it was an incredibly painful experience, the reactions of the people that I had completely forgotten were the worst part of the entire ordeal and even to this day there are just gaps, I know there should be** ** _something_** **there but there isn't, but that is where the motivation for this chapter came from, as well as a little bit of trivia about my personal life.**

 **Replies!**

 **CerebralCortex31: All's well that ends well right?**

 **Dante: K. Her memory loss isn't a plot point, it's more like a plot propeller but ok.**

 **martindino123: Okay first off, don't flame me and hide behind 'no offence' Have to admit it's boring and annoying? You are directly insulting my writing, that I work hard on producing of course I am going to take offence to that, but just to act like a nice guy you add how I should continue the story to your tastes, do you hate the idea or like it make up your mind, it's not a fairy tale and memories don't come back because someone you were in love with kisses you, I know that from personal experience and I want to be clear on something else, Amnesia is very far from overused, in fact it's considered 'very difficult' to correctly write a character with Amnesia, so writers tend to avoid it for that reason I only used it because Astrid coming away from that completely unscathed is completely impossible, something else I've learned from personal experience, so I do hope the read wasn't 'tedious' and that you enjoyed this chapter more than the last one that I can't be sure if you liked or hated.**

 **Hypernova5.0: Dagur will get's what coming to him don't you worry about that, you called it though, they returned to Berk!**

 **ShadowSpirit020: You didn't expect her to walk away from that unscathed did you?**

 **.2015: Course I did, do you now know who I am? :P**

 **OechsnerC: What kind of self respecting writer writes predictably? Of course I'm going to keep you on your toes, writings not fun if I don't….I'm a little bit evil aren't?**

 **Guest: Snotlout understood where Hiccup was coming from, I don't know how exactly I am going to go with their relationship from here so I'm giving it a little more thought.**

 **AngryHenry: I feel obligated to ask why your angry? But Astrid's back! In all her ass-kicking glory so Dagur should tread carefully!**

 **Iris Patton: Very few people have ever called me an 'Amazing' Writer, I consider myself relatively good at writing, but I just try** ** _really_** **hard to write well, I want to make a career out of it so I can't afford to be half assed about it you know? You should know by now the moment you start to feel safe going into my chapters there's gonna be a cliffhanger, it's just par for the course, lure readers into false sense of security then strike…I'm definitely evil.**

 **Carl Solo: I'm glad you enjoy this story so much, considering how many stories are on this website I'm quite flattered this is your favorite.**

 **Husebad: At this point you really shouldn't be surprised :P**

 **Rogue Deity Master: First of all, your name is pretty sick, second of all the amnesia's gone, so I hope you enjoyed this chapter :P**

 **rere97maui: Glad your enjoying the story so far, I hope you continue to enjoy it!**

 **EagleDragon15: I thought me being evil had already been established at this point, but I did kinda fix it so I'm sure it'll be fine.**

 **As always I do hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I will see you guys in the next one, peace!**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: So, who's already watched RTTE season 3, cause I have and if you think** _ **I**_ **leave chapters on bad cliffhangers hahaha, then say hello to my brother fucking SATAN, just what?! Why?! But I mean, it gave me a number of ideas and proved that katanas exist in the archipelago, so I mean there's that one thing that I totally called accidentally so woot!**

 **Okay, so I realize I've been gone for awhile, I don't really have an excuse, I got writer's block for my HTTYD fictions and then they announced Volume 4 of RWBY (Like one of my all time favorite things, if you haven't watched it you should it's awesome.) So idea's for my RWBY fiction started flowing really well. But assuming my brain cooperates (I mean it's not as likely as you'd think.) You should start seeing some updates across my HTTYD fics, I even have an idea for a new one, but I'm gonna finish one of my four before I upload it.**

* * *

It took Hiccup two days to regain all of the movement in his body to a point where Astrid would allow him to leave Gothi's medical hut. Although Hiccup defended that he could have left the morning he had been able to stand, Astrid would leave him little choice.

Stoick walked through the village, nodding quickly to the people that greeted him, news of his sons plan to marry Astrid as soon as possible had long since reached his ears, he had elected to allow his son to recover before he spoke to the boy himself, he ran into Gothi in the centre of the village.

"Gothi, have you seen Hiccup?" The elder glanced at him momentarily and pointed towards the chiefs home with her staff, Stoick thanked her with a nod and began walking towards his home.

He found Hiccup seated by the hearth, from the way the boy looked he had been waiting for his father to arrive.

"Glad to see your back on your feet." Stoick greeted calmly taking a seat opposite his son.

"You've got that look on your face again," Hiccup replied simply eyeing his father steadily "Your opposed?"

Stoick chuckled "No, but I need you to compromise with me."

Hiccup lifted a brow at his father and the man continued "Viking weddings are not quickly organized hasty affairs, they are large scale feasts, celebrations. In this time, with everything how it is, I can't endanger the entire village like that."

"Good, that suits us just fine," Hiccup replied calmly, his father's eyes widened and he continued "Long, drawn out public shows of affection aren't Astrid's forte and to be honest they aren't mine either. We were hoping, we could have the wedding with only the necessary parties in attendance and hide the celebration amongst the feast we will have when we win this war."

"You've actually talked about this haven't you? This isn't you going off on your own?" Stoick asked

"What did you honestly think I laid around for two days doing nothing? You give me forty eight hours with nothing but my own mind to keep me company I'm unstoppable, add Astrid to the mix it just makes it so much better." Hiccup grinned

Stoick rose to his feet and rubbed at his chin for a few seconds "I think the village can forgo a few of its older traditions for the new heroes of Berk."

"Traditions? We ride dragons dad, I think we can almost abandon tradition." Hiccup joked getting to his feet, his father placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled.

"Aye that might be true, but that will be something I'll leave to your judgment when you become chief," Stoick almost laughed when his sons eyes widened "Of course that's still a few decades down the track."

Hiccup calmed somewhat at that news, at least his father didn't plan on dropping the village on him in a year or something, his father turned around and left the house no doubt to prepare and leave Hiccup to his thoughts, the door opened and Hiccup lifted his head as his father spoke "I trust you've already prepared a gift for her then?"

Hiccup blanked "Uh…..of course!" He exclaimed "I'll have everything ready by the time you're done preparing."

The moment his father closed the door Hiccup scrambled, grabbing his journal and dashing out the back door to make a beeline for the forge, he'd already made her armor and a weapon and he knew Astrid pretty well, or at least well enough to know that she wasn't one for mass amounts of jewelry, of course that didn't leave him with any options.

He raked a hand through his hair, he really hadn't put enough thought into this at all, what the hell was he supposed to put together, knowing Astrid and in the amount of time he had left, his head flopped against his desk with a heavy thud.

Hiccup Haddock, had a plan to deal with an infestation of Whisper Death's and winning a war with the Berserkers, but he had _no_ idea what he was going to make his future wife as a wedding present.

Figures the three of these things that should be _easy_ was the most difficulty, he understood war and dragons, romance was just an entirely different entity that he could never get a grasp on, not that Astrid was huge on the romance side of things, she was practically, this was one of the few instances where he wished the girl actually showed an interest in something pointless and shiny, just to make his life easier.

"Tis a nice day for Berk is it not Master Hiccup?" Hiccup jerked around to face the voice, Johann flashed him a grin and Hiccup's eyes widened.

"Johann! I didn't hear you got in, it certainly is a nice day," Hiccup agreed casting a look outside "Uh, I'll come and look at your wares in a moment."

Johann cocked his head to the side "Is something wrong master Hiccup, you seem a little….frazzled." Hiccup frowned and took a calming breath.

"I guess you could say I am a little…out of sorts," He voiced levelly "I'm uh, getting married in a few hours."

A massive grin appeared on the merchants face "Ah, Viking traditions, yes I am quite familiar with them," Johann mused as he scratched the beard on his chin "You know, I once visited a land, in which the weddings they held were much more simple affairs, the only things exchanged between the two lovers was a small ring, worn on this finger," Johann held up his hand and gestured to his fourth finger "Sometimes the towns would sit and watch these affairs, but most of the time it was only family."

Hiccup chuckled "Funny you should mention that, technically speaking this marriage is small, also secret _very_ secret, but only the necessary members will be attending." Hiccup trailed off, the gears in his head beginning to turn "But you have given me and idea, Johann what have you brought us, on this, as you put it. Fine Berkian day."

Johann chuckled "Why right this way master Hiccup." Johann gestured out of smithy and the pair left, setting a brisk pace towards Johann's ship.

* * *

Astrid was currently standing on said ship, staring at the mounds of exotic things Johann brought and wondering what in the actual hell she was going to give Hiccup. She could go practical, get him things she _knew_ he'd use, paper, charcoal, more squid ink. But none of those things felt right, ignoring that he'd stock up them himself.

She was still kind of panicking about the fact she was going to be his _wife_ , a whole mess of feelings swirled and vortexed in her chest every time the thought occurred to her. She'd sort of expected the marriage eventually, she may have even named their hypothetical children, of course she'd never admit that.

Hiccup was going to be her _Husband_!

She did a small leap for joy at the thought, shifting excitedly from foot to foot.

"Um?" Astrid snapped back into reality at Ruffnut's voice.

Astrid grabbed the nearest sharp object to her "I _finally_ found one," She gestured to the odd, double bladed axe…thing, she tilted her head at the object "Whatever this is."

Ruffnut shrugged it off, Astrid being a weapon nut was not new information.

"Ah, that is a good find Miss Astrid, I only have a small number, I've been trading with some of the fishing villages recently, apparently they've had some help from Dragon Rider's recently and have been fending off Dagur's attacks, a few of them have even bolstered their militia's with some dragons, ah, Tis truly a time of change." Johann mused as he walked over to her, casting a suggestive eyebrow back at Hiccup who just shrugged.

"It's made from Razorwhip scales, the beasts are rare this far north, they are large silver and covered in wicked spikes, similar to your Nadder," Johann noted as he explained the species "Their scales are like no metal I have ever seen, both in cutting ability and strength."

Astrid folded the weapon open in her hands and spun it, it was _ridiculously_ light, but she'd learned from Gronkle Iron that light did _not_ translate to weak. But she already had an axe, one that her soon to be _husband_ had made her no less, she had to try really hard to keep her face level as she moved to hand it back to Johann.

The merchant shook his head almost imperceptively, pushing the weapon back to her hands and leaning forward "Consider it a wedding present." He whispered, Astrid's eyes widened, her cheeks colored and she scoffed her boot against the deck of the ship before nodding.

She glanced at Hiccup, he wouldn't have told Johann without some sort of reason or plan and she trusted him, she nodded gratefully to Johann who then moved towards Snotlout who was waving him over.

* * *

Hiccup stared at the number of things he could use, he'd grabbed more squid ink, paper and charcoal like he always did, the paper would come in handy smuggling whatever he decided to get for Astrid off the ship without her noticing.

Johann padded over to him swiftly after he had finished dealing with Snotlout, Hiccup glanced at the merchant as he held something towards him.

Four crystal's fell into his hands, he recognized the Emerald and Sapphire, the blue reminded him of Astrid's eyes and he smiled warmly at the thought, the other two he had never seen before.

The first was jet black, it reminded him of Toothless, the chunk was about the size of his fist "It's called Obsidian, I met a strange tribe far to the west who work with it, they gifted it to me after I helped saved one of their leaders from a large cat they call a 'jaguar' it's a riveting story," Johann trailed off and smirked "But a story for another time."

Hiccup nodded and stared at the final crystal, it was a whitish silver it wasn't quite transparent but as he turned it there were small areas he could see through.

Then the gears stopped turning and he knew what he was going to be making, he wrapped the crystals in a piece of paper and slipped them beneath his armor as he retrieved coin to pay for the usual things he grabbed.

Johann accepted the usual some of money and grinned "Consider the crystals a wedding present as well." He winked and walked over to Fishlegs who was asking something about one of the many books Johann had brought.

Hiccup shook his head, now he understood why Astrid had blushed and why he hadn't seen any money change hands when she had been given the axe. Still it was handled stealthily enough, none of the other teens seemed to notice anything and Astrid had been too busy speaking with Ruffnut to notice the gems he'd been given.

He excused himself back to the forge at the least suspicious opportunity.

* * *

Astrid exited to the forest, having found something she thought she could give Hiccup that didn't feel too easy. Well, saying that _she_ was going to have to somehow put it together. She found a beautiful black material on Johann's ship, he'd told her it was called 'silk' and was favored by nobles in other lands, however just from the feeling she knew it wasn't going to be the warmest of fabrics, so she'd bought a large section of thick wool as well, she planned to line the inside with wool. At least then her husband wouldn't freeze.

She let out a sigh of relief, her heart still swelled with the thought, but she didn't feel the urge to physically jump at the thought anymore. The reason she'd chosen the forest? Well, her new axe gave her the perfect excuse to go 'training' a grin pulled at the edge of her face. She was definitely going to surprise Hiccup.

* * *

Hiccup wiped sweat from his brow and panted as he worked, in the last few hours. Let's just say he'd gained a new level of respect for jewelry makers. But he'd accomplished his task, the two small rings caught the firelight of the forge and sparkled slightly.

The first band was made using the Obsidian, the emerald was set into the band itself to the ring didn't stick out, but the green contrasted with the black perfectly, exactly how he had envisioned it.

The second, used the silver-white crystal to create he band, Gobber had informed him it was a rare type of crystal named 'Moonstone' he didn't really care for the name, much like before the sapphire was set into the band itself, allowing it to almost stealthily fit onto his finger. The small band reminded him of Astrid, which was all he needed it to do.

He grinned widely as he stared down at the two rings, now he just had to find Astrid.

"I saw the lass going off into the forest," Gobber voiced without even looking up from his work, Hiccup dropped his apron on its hook, grabbed his helmet placed the two rings in a pouch on his belt and left the forge with a determined stride.

* * *

Astrid glared at the small piece of fabric in front of her, her finger having felt the wrath of the needle much more than a dozen times already and she was _so_ close to being finished. She had however, gained a respect for the women who repaired all their clothing, she'd always held a sort of contempt for women who thought that just sowing, cleaning and cooking made them important.

She had definitely seen her mistake now, staring at the small pincushion that had became her thumb.

"Just three more stitches," She whispered to herself in a pseudo pep talk, her tongue sticking out of the side of her mouth in concentration as she moved the needle, she smiled to herself as she finally executed the final movements without poking herself eight times and she held up the scarf "I really hope Hiccup likes this."

"He does." She started and threw the nearest sharpened object at the voice before she recognized it, her new axe spun through the air and embedded into a tree beside his head with a thunk "Well, that's familiar."

"Hey, we have a rule, no sneaking up on me with the mask on remember?" Astrid shot at him "This I was _supposed_ to be a surprise." She voiced in irritation, holding up the scarf, a flash of pride lit her smile as she regarded it again.

Hiccup chuckled "Well, I guess I'll just make us even." That caught her attention as he strode over to her and removed his helmet.

He set it down beside her and sat down, he removed something from the pouch on his waist and held out his hand, she stared at the two rings in slight awe.

One was black, the emeralds set in the band caught the light and glimmered at her and she sighed slightly as she picked it up, it reminded her of Hiccup, the black and the green and she grinned giddily as she slid it onto her finger and held it up to stare at it.

"I'm glad you like it, because that one's yours." Hiccup voiced in relief.

She glanced at the other one, the white and blue shimmered as Hiccup slid it over his own finger "The colors of this one remind me of you, that way, if either of us ever get separated, we've always got something, you know?" He turned his head away in slight embarrassment.

Astrid colored and smiled "They are great Hiccup, this one reminds me of you as well." He turned his gaze to her and she leant forward, planting a light kiss on his lips.

Hiccup's face contorted in slight worry as she let out a shaky breath, his hand moved to her shoulder "This is actually happening isn't it? We're getting _married!_ " She jumped to her feet, a giggle escaping her mouth as she pulled Hiccup to his feet with her and spun around, a huge smile on her face.

Hiccup was relieved that she wasn't upset, he'd feared the worst for a moment and he pulled her into him and nuzzled into her neck "Yeah, we are." He whispered into her ear, enjoying the shiver the wracked her body.

"Well, you'd best take this back and get to your dad, I'm sure my mother will want to have her way with me before you do," Astrid winked at him and Hiccup blushed scarlet and stiffened as she retrieved the scarf and handed the ring back to him. Immediately missing the weight on her finger "Later babe." She shot at him teasingly before darting into the trees.

I can't believe I just said that! Astrid internally screamed in embarrassment.

Hiccup took a number of long breaths and stared at the canopy of trees "Later Milady." He voiced to the trees in agreement, he forced himself to calm down with a couple more breaths.

* * *

The moment Astrid walked into their home her mother grabbed her and dragged her upstairs, a sky blue gown already laid out on her bed and, her mother hurriedly set about unbraiding Astrid's hair as the girl stripped off her usual armor, Astrid stared at the mirror in front of her and took a breath.

No turning back didn't sound like the right thing to psyche herself up with anymore, she smirked to herself as she though. I wouldn't want to turn back anyway.

She shrugged and half tuned her mother out as the woman began gushing as she helped her get into the gown.

Hiccup had a much different experience, he strode into his home and he father grinned at him, slapped him on the shoulder "Everything ready?" Hiccup nodded, showing his father the rings, Stoick eyed them with pride and nodded "Well done son, I don't think a father could be more proud of his own."

Hiccup grinned awkwardly "Ah, I'm sure you say that to all your sons." He quipped and Stoick chuckled.

"I'm sure you mother would be proud as well, she and Astrid are very alike and even a blind man could see the love you two hold for each other." Stoick grinned widely.

Hiccup nodded gratefully, his father had kept the conversation nice and easy, no embarrassing moments yet, he just needed to keep it that way.

"Now let a more…experienced man give you a few pointers," Stoick announced clapping his son on the back as they walked, Hiccup paled at stared at the sky, what did he do? He asked the gods in silent prayer "It's all in the build up."

Hiccup laughed mirthlessly and almost silently as his father continued to traumatize him.

* * *

Almost an hour later, Hiccup stood on one of the many cliffs on the edge of Berk, smoothing out the nonexistent creases in his armor and stared at the sun as it slowly dipped towards the horizon, surprisingly he had gotten through his father's 'pointers' relatively unscathed and the pair waited patiently and more importantly _silently_ , for Astrid to arrive.

* * *

Astrid stared at her reflection in mild awe, she had never really let her mother dictate her appearance before and her mother had never really meddled, allowing her daughter to wear what she saw fit, her wedding had been a completely different affair, her mother had all but set this as a condition for the marriage to happen at all.

She wasn't going to complain, the dress wasn't that flashy, it was simple light blue wool over white, her hair was down and a small circlet of gold with a single blue gem sat in the center of her forehead, keeping her hair out her face and flowing down her back, her face had been lightly dusted in a few make up Johann had brought that he mother had purchased, a dark blue line framed her eyes and her lips were painted a slightly darker shade of pink.

She liked the way she looked, she _really_ liked it. Even more than that, she knew only a few people would ever see her like this and Hiccup was in that group. Her mouth split into a wide smile.

"Well, we've probably kept them waiting long enough," Her mother voiced as she gave Astrid's shoulder a light pat "We'd best be off my dear."

Astrid nodded and followed her mother downstairs, he father greeted her with a light kiss on the cheek and he smiled warmly "You look beautiful Astrid."

She smiled and nodded her head, her mother continued to lead her forward "You'd best not be late dear." She called back to Astrid's father, who nodded and quickly left through the front door as Astrid and her mother snuck out the back.

"I'm so glad I convinced your father to go on ahead," Her mother began, that was a _terrible_ sign for the beginning of this conversation, her mother's eyebrows wriggled suggestively "Now that you two will be free to do as you please with each other, let me give you a little insight, or if you will the Hofferson women's greatest techniques."

Astrid's eyes widened and she stared at the sky, mouthing 'Why gods?' silently as her mother continued.

"It's all about light touches and the tongue is an excellent appendage to…stimulate certain areas." Astrid paled and did her best to tune her mother out, unfortunately she was also kind of curious as to some of the information, so while half her brain died of embarrassment the other half listened intently, bookmarking anything she thought would be perfect to try on Hiccup.

When they arrived, Astrid's mother swapped with her father and moved to stand opposite Stoick, Astrid's father smiled warmly as he walked Astrid around the corner to where Hiccup awaited, nervously wringing his hands and shifting his weight from foot to foot, she suppressed the urge to laugh at his nervous habits.

His fell on her and his face softened, a smile she could only describe as 'cheating' fell on his face as she walked towards him, her cheeks colored slightly, her father handed her over to Hiccup silently and Hiccup took her hand and nodded gratefully to her father, who gave him a simple warning look that said everything that needed to be said between the two men.

"Well, we've already thrown away most of our traditions with this wedding," Stoick voiced in slight mirth "But be that as it may, this is still a wedding, a unison between the Haddock and Hofferson clans, that's let's face it we all saw coming a mile away," Everyone present chuckled slightly at that "You may say you're piece now."

Hiccup took a breath and stepped forward, retrieving the small black ring from his pouch "As the warrior that is by my side, you will always have me utmost respect, I know I can trust you with my life and I hope you can trust me with yours," As he slipped the ring on he continued "But as my Wife, you will always have my undying love and my loyalty, you have my protection, my warmth and anything you require of me. You hold my entire heart Astrid Hofferson. I love you."

Astrid fought the tears in her eyes back with sheer force of will as she took the ring from him and grabbed his hand with her slightly shaking fingers "Of course I trust you with my life," She almost snapped and he grinned "But as your wife, I trust you with so much more than that. You're my light Hiccup Haddock, you let me see colors I never thought I would, you make me feel like the greatest woman on the earth. You make me feel unstoppable. You also infuriate me," Hiccup chuckled slightly and she placed her hand against his cheek, he leaned into her touch and locked her eyes on hers as she slid the ring onto his finger "And I wouldn't have it any other way. I love you."

She quickly grabbed the scarf from her mother and wrapped it around his neck "Just as I have your warmth, you have mine, you will always have a home with me, no matter where you are, I hope you remember I'll be waiting for you to come back."

Hiccup stepped forward and pressed his lips against hers "I promise to always return Astrid, not hell nor high water could keep me from coming back to you."

"I know pronounce you, man and wife, you've already kissed the bride." Hiccup let his face fall into his hand in slight embarrassment and Astrid giggled into the back of her hand.

Stoick stepped forward and slipped something into Hiccup's hand, the slight jingle of keys met their ears and Stoick smiled "I think you're mother would have wanted you to have the house you grew up in."

Hiccup stared at the set of two identical keys and his eyes widened "But…What about you dad? I can't just throw you out, I mean I literally can't throw you out by the way, look at the size of you." Hiccup pointed out and Stoick barked a loud laugh.

"Don't worry, the house I had built was not for the two of you, it was for me, I will be comfortable, feel free to visit whenever you like son." Stoick clapped him and the shoulder strongly and strode away without another word, leaving Hiccup to accept without the option of argument.

"Now, remember what I told you," Astrid winced at her mother's opening line "Remember you are always welcome to stop in to chat and if I am not the _first_ person to hear about grandbabies there will be hell to pay, am I understood?"

"Yes ma'am." Astrid straightened and voiced respectfully, recognizing the tone immediately.

"Good, now go have fun." She wiggled her eyebrows, Astrid's father looked mortified. Astrid colored scarlet and Hiccup stiffened as he took her hand.

However as the newlyweds made it to their new home and walked towards the massive bed, 'fun' was the last thing on their minds as Hiccup swung the door closed and all but ripped off his armor, Astrid loosened the dress and the pair collapsed on the bed, Hiccup shifted around and dragged the heavy furs over the pair of them as Astrid snuggled into his chest.

"Goodnight Mrs. Haddock." Hiccup kissed the top of her head lightly and she smiled.

"Goodnight Mr. Haddock." She returned as the two succumbed to the days exhaustion.

* * *

 **A/N: YAY MARRIAGE CHEESE. I do hope the long wait was worth this chapter, I realize it's kind of short and all the issues are kind of glossed over, but let's face it they were getting married. It was supposed to one of the best days of their life, the universe cut them some slack (By universe I mean me, I gave them slack. I'm not all bad.) Now for the people who worried about lemony content, this story will remain T, the lemon I plan to write for this fiction will be a separate one shot, that way everybody wins (And I mean, those hypothetical children need to be created somehow.) So don't worry about a quick sudden change to M. I won't go any further in this story than I already have as far as sexual acts go.**

 **Now, 3 months of replies to get to!**

 **Lara5170: I'm pretty sure I replied to you by PM, but on the chance that I didn't, they are not 15, the story started with them around that age, I'd put them at 19-20 at this point as I will soon be moving into HTTYD2.**

 **Husebad: Yeah, dragging that out would have just been a tedious affair, I experimented with a few iterations of the chapter and I ended up going with that.**

 **Angel-the-hedge: Well, that last chapter had the proposal, so this one was the marriage itself, I hope you enjoyed!**

 **Someone 24: I'm glad you have been enjoyed the story, sorry about the delay in updates!**

 **Brickgirl101: I'm glad you're enjoying my writing. I only ever planned a one or two chapter arc with the memory loss, as with the constant looming threat of Dagur it would be quite silly for me to drag that on. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!**

 **Zella: If you were screaming about the last chapter, I can't imagine your reaction to this one.**

 **OechsnerC: All the best authors are evil, let's face it. I'm glad you enjoy my writing though.**

 **Carl Solo: I'm glad you are continuing to enjoy the story, as always thanks for the compliments to my writing, hope the marriage wasn't too cheesy.**

 **Rogue Deity Master: Thanks very much, glad you're enjoying the story.**

 **.165: I hope this lived up to your expectations.**

 **Guest: I'm glad you enjoyed, I do hope the marriage was a good read as well, thanks for enjoying the story.**

 **midnightsky0612: If you've somehow developed a device that puts you in fantasy realms you had best mass release that to EVERYONE, I'm serious you, that is NOT technology you keep secret. If you haven't then I'm sorry, but there was no best man/maid at the wedding, unless you count their parents.**

 **rere97maui: Oh, I have many a plan for a stunning conclusion, sorry this chapter didn't really cover the Whispering Death issues, but don't worry. It's coming!**

 **DinoBoy13: Well, that's just fucking fine, I'm Australian, we curse about most things :P I'm glad you enjoyed and yes, state of fear plus familiar setting was the trigger for the memories return.**

 **Iris Patton: See, I've aptly warned you, I am evil (Sometimes, other times I'm nice. You'll never know which is coming and when MUAHAHA *coughs* okay.) My relationship with cliffhangers is completely healthy, I don't know what you are insinuating. My cliffhangers are wonderful, evil contraptions designed to induce desk flipping irritation, I don't have a problem *whistles*.**

 **MAD Marty: Honestly, it really isn't a big deal. I kind of overreacted as well, it's not fair for me to use personal experiences (That you have no knowledge of.) to make a point, I am glad you have been enjoying my stories and I do hope you continue to enjoy them, I should be more open to criticism in the first place, so that was my bad. Regardless hope you enjoyed this chapter : )**

 **Shadowspirit020: Of course she's back, I'm not THAT evil, jeez.**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N:** **Just gonna out a reminder for the lemon that is associated with this story here, It's in my other story centered around one-shots and drabble things and that's where I'll likely put all of the content similar to it in the future.**

 **With that out of the way. I know the last chapter was basically filler, but it had to be done. I didn't want to drag the marriage over a bunch of chapters to add needless length, I don't think it really suits Astrid's character very well and all things considered I'm quite happy with how it turned out. Now onto the next chapter!**

* * *

Hiccup tightened his shield around his arm and stomped his foot to make his boot sit properly. He heard Astrid boots pad down the stairs behind him and he glanced at her. She was wearing the suit of armor he'd made for her before they left, her own helmet tucked under the crook of her arm whilst his was in the other hand.

She tossed it at him and he caught it and smirked at her "Off to save the village again?"

"Well, I figure if we don't do it. No one will." He quipped as he pulled the helmet over his head.

There was a knock at the door and Hiccup tugged it open as Astrid donned her helmet and walked out behind him, the teenagers of Berk stood in front of his house, their dragons spread in the square behind them.

Hiccup glanced at the sun, beginning to dip towards the horizon and rolled his neck calmly as Toothless landed in the square in front of them, Stormfly flanking behind him, Ghost remained perched on the roof of his home.

"Now we are going to go evict some Whispering Deaths." Hiccup voiced positively.

The group fell into step behind him, Fishlegs was the first to speak.

"Uh, Hiccup, just a small thing about that really, I mean the plan is good, is a _great_ plan actually it's just that you know…It might not work." The blonde spoke quickly.

"Fishlegs, we double checked the dragon manual, spoke to every experienced dragon slayer on the island and we know the Whispering Death's are congregating on the eastern side of the island," Hiccup drawled as he checked Toothless's saddle "Besides, you guys have the easy part."

"You're part is the one I'm talking about," Fishlegs groaned in exasperation "You _can't_ fly where you can't see!"

" _I_ don't need to see," Hiccup replied simply "Toothless will see for me, wont'cha bud?"

Toothless warbled affirmatively and the pair gave Fishlegs a pointed stare.

"Fine, but if you die. I'm gonna write 'Fishleg's told him so.' On your grave." Fishlegs let out the exasperated shout and through his arms into the air.

Hiccup chuckled "Alright, all of you head into the forest, remember Whispering Death's lurk in _packs_ when they are young, so cover each other's backs."

"What if the largest ones with us?" Tuffnut asked quickly.

"Distract it and keep It above ground until I can get there, we know they are quick and I don't want to risk any of you getting cause off guard." Hiccup returned strongly "Then it's just a matter of forcing the largest one off the island."

"And moving their eggs, Whispering Death's always return to the place where they were hatched I'd say there's a good chance the eggs hold a smell they can recognize anywhere."

Hiccup nodded "We need to get them off our island first, preferably without killing them. But if you're cornered your lives are more important than theirs, understood?"

The group nodded and Hiccup pulled himself into Toothless's saddle "Let's go bud." He smirked as he gave the Night Fury a light pat on the neck.

* * *

It didn't take long for them to fly around the island to where they had found the Whispering Death's nest, the pair padded in slowly in case one happened to be lurking close to home.

"Okay bud, do your thing." Hiccup whispered, Toothless let out an inaudible hiss, a dark indigo line rolled out in front of them, lining the walls enough the Hiccup could see where everything was even if he couldn't make it out clearly. There was a short interval between the waves of light and he took a moment to attune to them.

He lowered into Toothless's saddle and took a breath as they launched up into the massive hole hanging ominously above their heads.

Hiccup noticed it almost immediately, the stench was so strong it overwhelmed his nose and he clenched his eyes shut and halted Toothless so he could gag, Toothless head snapped around the small open cavern they were in worriedly and Hiccup's eyes traced the walls he could see. Toothless had a right to be worried.

The stench of Death hung heavily in the air.

Hiccup wiped at his nose as something caught his ear, the sound was so quiet he thought he was hearing things at first, it was a slight slide. Similar to the sound Toothless would make when he slipped off a rock, it was gone almost as soon as he'd heard it.

He glanced behind him and his eyes widened "Down!" Toothless folded his wings and the two dropped like a rock, barely avoiding a set of massive white jaws, Toothless unfolded his wings and came to a hover just above the bottom of the cavern "Now that we have his attention."

The thing was massive, Hiccup could make out small sections of red lining white scales, but other than that he could gather no other details in the dark "Toothless," The dragon glanced at him "Say hello." It looked like Toothless grinned as the familiar hiss of plasma boiling in his throat reached Hiccup's ears before the blast slammed into the unknown dragon's face.

The thing let out a scream and dived at them, Hiccup lowered into the saddle and they curved around the beasts dive in moved into one of the many tunnels leading up, the creature turned swiftly, not even coming into contact with the ground of the cavern.

"Looks like he's fast too bud." Hiccup voiced as he spared a glance behind them, catching a glimpse of two red slitted piercing eyes.

Toothless let out a warbled as they weaved around the tunnels, Hiccup's eyes scanned everywhere, trying to find a way above ground where Toothless had an un-doubtable advantage, in these narrow tunnels that couldn't make any moves to attack, they were lucky the dragon had elected to pursue them so far as it was.

Hiccup frowned, this dragon built these tunnels, he knew it was fast at least fast enough that it should be keeping a much closer pace to Toothless especially since his Night Fury had to fly slower in order to keep from hitting a wall in an unfamiliar place.

Why was it giving them such a lead?

Hiccup drew back on the saddle as the realization struck him, a young Whispering Death speared down ahead of them burrowing passed them, Hiccup sent a look at the large creature behind them, they'd managed to find a small uneven part of ground that hid Toothless almost completely.

"I've got an idea," Toothless glanced at him in very unconvinced manner "Don't look at me like that, it's a great plan…probably," Toothless let out a sarcastic warble "Whatever, I think this things led us away from any way to the surface, so we are going to make our own hole."

Toothless shot him a look that just screamed 'And how do you propose we do that?'

"Simple." Hiccup went silent as the creature flew over them and he gestured for Toothless to ram the things stomach, Toothless used a powerful wing beat and leapt throwing every ounce of weight he had into the blow.

The creature let out a surprised roar as it slammed the roof, but in its position it couldn't turn to attack them, so it turned it's head to the roof of the tunnel and drove through the stone.

Hiccup and Toothless took off in the other direction, away from where they'd be lead into the failed ambush, Hiccup continued to scan the openings on either side of them, he finally caught sight of a pool of light.

"There." He exclaimed Toothless rolled around as the something massive came slamming through the wall beside them, stone and dust showering them, Hiccup's shield unfolded and he slammed it against the creatures closing jaw as he locked his legs to Toothless back.

"Go bud!" Toothless whipped the dragon with his tail, the fin catching the left eye and causing the massive beast to recoil with a quick hiss of pain as Toothless took off down the tunnel.

"Toothless, open a hole." Plasma hissed and shattered the thing ling of stone that prevented them from successfully leave the tunnel.

The pair turned and hovered above the hole waiting for the large dragon to chase after them, at this point they'd inflicted more than enough damage to cause it to have a grudge against them.

It didn't follow them through the hole they had made, instead it came shattering through the ground into the air to hover in front of them, giving Hiccup his first good view of it in the light.

The head was enormous, dwarfing the other Whispering Death's easily, in fact it's head was likely larger than Toothless entire body. It's scales were pearly white, with small sections of red spread over it. It's eyes were completely blood red, save for the small black slits that were locked angrily onto them. It's body resembled that of the Whispering Death's it was thinner, spiked and spiraled behind it. But it was still substantially bigger than it's brethren.

He saw it take a breath and lean it's had back, before it let out an ear shattering screech, Toothless buckled as the noise assaulted his ears and the creature launched in that moment of weakness, Hiccup glanced down and then back up.

He sounded a resigned snort as he unhooked himself from Toothless saddle and quickly locked the tail, he launched off of Toothless head and caught one of the many spikes lining the side of the massive dragons head and slammed his shield into it, the blow was distracting enough that the beast moved off course and flew by Toothless as the Night Fury shook itself to recover and darted beneath them.

Hiccup dragged his blade across the things cheek as he dropped down, opening a thin gash across its face, blood oozed from the wound and the thing snapped to them, diving towards them quickly.

Above ground however, Toothless had the obvious advantage, they weaved through the trees expertly as the dragon behind them smashed into them, slowing with each thicket of old trees it slammed through.

The creature let out another loud roar, but instead of the debilitating shriek from before, this one didn't cause Toothless to change in any way, Hiccup frowned for a moment before the intention of the roar became clear.

"Aw, the babies calling for help." Hiccup taunted as Toothless rolled out of the way of a regular Whispering Death launching out of the ground to snap at them.

Toothless let out a similar amused warble "Well, we've got some of the followers, how about we go collect the rest?" Toothless rolled out of the way of another Whispering Death and let out a warble of agreement.

* * *

Astrid scanned the sky she could see in the moments reprieve they'd just gotten, she couldn't see Hiccup or Toothless, but she couldn't see all that much through the trees.

She breathed heavily, it hadn't taken long for the Whispering Deaths to launch their ambush, fortunately the group of teens hadn't landed completely on the ground and their dragons had managed to get out of the way, the teens themselves were now back to back in a large clearing, numerous holes surrounding them and all of them breathing heavily.

"Won't they just come up where we are standing," Snotlout let out a alerted hiss, not taking his eyes off his surroundings "There's not a lot of safe _ground_ where Whispering Death's are concerned."

"Well there isn't enough ground for our dragons to _land_ either!" Astrid snapped back.

Fishlegs drove the spike attached to the bottom of his massive shield into the ground, the resulting clangs were much different from metal impacting on regular stone, in fact the earth beneath him didn't even chip, usually he could drive that spike completely into the ground, regardless of what was under them "Patch of bedrock. Even Whispering Death's can't burrow through this, that's why they build foundations out of it where this kind of Dragon is a more prominent problem."

"Great, so if we are gonna get eaten at least we'll _see_ them coming! Fantastic!" Snotlout exclaimed in annoyance.

"At least they are too young to breath fire." Tuffnut voiced positively.

"Yeah, that would have made things _WAY_ harder!" Ruffnut chorused in agreement.

"They're coming." Astrid warned, she could hear the ground moving around beneath them thanks to the tunnels around them.

With a hiss a Whispering Death launched from one of the tunnels in front of her, she noticed it was a little larger than the ones they'd been fighting previously, she didn't put much thought to it until it opened its mouth and a swirling mess of green gas caught her eyes. They widened as the gas ignited and flew towards her.

She felt someone pull her backwards, followed by the telltale sign of Fishleg's shield getting planted into the ground, the fire slammed the metal and the massive boy didn't so much as shift, he lifted the shield and locked his shoulder against it as he marched forward, Ruffnut fell into step behind him, keeping low to avoid the fire.

Fishlegs nodded and kicked the shield up, slamming the wall of metal into the underbelly of the dragon as Ruffnut vaulted his shoulder and speared just below the creatures left eye.

The dragon recoiled in shock and dived back under the ground.

"Aw, I want a shield like that." Tuffnut complained as a second dragon flew from the ground and dove at him.

He rolled backwards, tumbling acrobatically on his hands and landing out of the way of the creature almost gracefully, arms outstretched to either side of him.

His sister whistled and hooted "I give that a Ten!"

Tuffnut bowed as Snotlout darted passed him, again striking the creature weakly in order to not do any sort of fatal damage, just driving it back.

Astrid slid beneath another attacker and drove her boot into the underside of the things neck as it passed her, it let out a pained scream and Fishlegs leapt forward slamming his full weight and shield into its side, the thing struck a thick tree and hissed at him, launching a volley of spikes at him while he was recovering

Snotlout slid in front of him and spun the large great sword Hiccup had built him in his hands, battering most of the projectiles and catching the final in a gloves hand, the larger Whispering Death returned and Snotlout rolled out of the way of the stream of fire, allowing it to strike uselessly against Fishleg's shield as he tossed the spike towards the fire spewing dragons.

"What's their shot limit again?"

"Eight." Fishlegs gritted out as another smaller Whispering Death slammed against his shield.

Tuffnut launched forward and slammed both his feet against the side of the creatures head, before rolling back and landing low allowing Ruffnut to launch of his shoulder and land a third kick on the creatures face, driving it a little further into the air.

"So, either Hiccup get's here or Six to go." Astrid voiced as she rolled out of the way of a volley of spikes, she winced at a sharp pain in her abdomen and forced it out of her mind.

Three quick moving balls of purple rifled over her head and slammed into a few of the dragons as Toothless swept over the clearing.

The teens let out shouts of victory for a moment before a bloodcurdling roar reached their ears and the Whispering Death's all flew high, leaving the teens standing in the clearing in slightly terrified awe as the massive white dragon carved a path through the forest beside them.

"Looks like we got the whole party Toothless, What do you say we show em a thing or two?" Hiccup asked as he glanced behind them.

Toothless warbled in agreement as he twisted around a large sea stack and launched a ball of plasma back, it slammed the large white Whispering Death in the face and the thing let out another one of its ear piercing screeches, Toothless rolled out of the way of the cone of sound and fired another shot, striking the thing in the side of the jaw.

Hiccup battered away a volley of spikes another small Whispering Death threw at them with his shield, Hiccup smirked as a massive volley of fireballs struck the group of Whispering Death's the other teens hovered beside him.

Toothless glared directly at the massive white Dragon.

" _Leave._ " Toothless snarled dangerously.

"I was _hatched_ here, It is not as simple as you would like to believe." The dragon snarled in response

"This place does not belong to you, this land is deafened by dragon and human alike, if you will not leave you will die." Toothless warned flatly.

"You believe you and these _humans_ are a threat to me?!" The dragon scoffed "I can smell their fear from here!"

"Yet they stand firm opposing you," Toothless glanced up as Ghost glided down to hover beside them "This is not a fight even a _Screaming Death_ can win."

Both parties remained still, neither daring to attack as the dragons growled at each other.

"This is _our_ hatching ground, if we were hatched in a place where we were fated to meet our end so be it. But I will not run away without a fight." The Screaming Death snarled ferociously.

"This was not _meant_ to be your hatching ground," Ghost countered flatly "But we know where you should be, give us the opportunity to return you to your rightful place."

The dragon paused and Hiccup glanced at Ghost silently, eyes shifting between the two dragons quickly.

The Screaming Death peered around "Perhaps there is truth to what you say, my instincts tell me this place is….unfamiliar, that our kind do not often live here."

"Then you will leave?" Toothless questioned simply.

"For now," The white dragon growled "But be warned, should you be lying. Should our hatching ground remain here, there will be no force on this earth that will stop me from _destroying_ you."

Toothless's eyes narrowed "We will see about that, you may be legendary amongst your kind but I have fought dragons _much_ larger and _much_ more terrifying than _you_ could ever hope to become."

The Screaming Death snorted in response "You have One Cycle."

The massive dragon shifted its head and the Whispering Death's fell in behind it as it flew off towards the horizon as the sun dipped entirely beneath it, cloaking the sky in black.

"That's it?!" Snotlout exclaimed in annoyance "All that work and we don't even get to become legends for killing a _Screaming Death?!_ "

"I'm surprised you even know what it's called." Fishlegs voiced in surprise.

"Hey, legend says if you kill one, you become the human vessel of _Thor_ himself! Of course I know about it!" The group collectively groaned, of course Snotlout knew about it because of something like that.

"I'm just glad it's over and nobody died, I feel like I could sleep for a week." Ruffnut voiced as she stretched.

"I concur sister, we did much, much more work than even _we_ were aware we were capable of doing." Tuffnut crossed his arms and stroked his chin.

"We might get a reputation for being _good_ people from this you know." Ruffnut shuddered at the thought.

"Well, we will _have_ to work to rectify that. Adieu our fellow compatriots, there is much planning to do. And a relatively good amount of time to do it." Tuffnut saluted his goodbyes and the twins were the first to leave for the village.

Followed closely by Fishlegs and Snotlout, Snotlout was attempting to goad Fishlegs into an argument by saying that Snotlout had saved his life, to which the blonde was just rolling his eyes.

"How are you feeling?" Hiccup asked, Astrid jerked slightly at the tone and the question.

"Still a little sore," Astrid admitted as she looked up at the stars "You know, it was a night like this wasn't it?"

Hiccup glanced up at the sky as the two began to leisurely glide back towards the village "Huh?" He sounded in question.

"When you kidnapped me with Toothless," She smirked as she answered dryly "Forced a Viking to fly on a _dragon_."

Hiccup chuckled "Well, I've never been orthodox, besides you seemed to like it. After you stopped fearfully screaming for your life."

"I was _not_ screaming for me life, I wasn't even scared." Astrid defended crossing her arms, at that moment Stormfly buckled and the girl let out a shout of alarm and grabbed the saddle tightly.

Hiccup attempted to suppress a snicker, attempted as in failed miserably.

"Not. A. Word. Haddock!" Astrid growled at him.

"I wasn't going to say anything," He returned defensively, Astrid huffed and slowly got to her feet so she was standing on Stormfly's saddle "What are you doing?" Hiccup questioned in surprise.

Astrid balanced herself along the edge of Stormfly's wing silently, Hiccup and Toothless just stared at the girl as if she'd gone mad, granted at least they were close so he could easily be able to catch her if she fell, so he was content to let this play out.

Astrid got to the point where she could walk no further and lowered slightly, Stormfly shifted to the side as she jumped and Hiccups eyes widened as he locked Toothless tail and threw his arms out, catching Astrid around the waist as his stomach did a number of flips.

She twisted herself around and sat behind him "Okay, I'm _never_ doing that again."

"I agree completely, that was _terrifying_ ," Astrid gave him a look "What?! Seeing my wife and love of my life launch herself off the back of a dragon is _supposed_ to terrify me!"

Astrid blushed darkly as she pulled Hiccup's helmet off his head, she placed it in one of the many packs on the side of Toothless's saddle and placed a light kiss on Hiccup's cheek.

"I'm pretty strong myself you know, you don't have to worry _that_ much." She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned her head against his shoulder.

He leaned back slightly and rested his head on her opposite shoulder "I know. You're _The_ Astrid Hofferson, even Thor would quake at the sound of your name!" He shouted the embellished exclamation with a laugh.

Astrid chuckled "So, how are you feeling after saving the village once again?" She questioned, peering at him with a smirk.

Hiccup took a breath and puffed out his chest "Well as always, it was a great effort from our entire group, we put together a well thought out plan that didn't work and just went with it from there and it somehow worked out." He explained in a voice almost imitating his fathers.

Astrid laughed "You know, someday we will just stop making plans."

"I second that notion, all our plans end up not working. We should just wing it from now on." Hiccup chuckled.

"Okay but seriously, how are you feeling?" Astrid asked

"A little tired, there's still a lot to do you know. I can't get soft now." Hiccup voiced with a small smile.

A wicked smile appeared on Astrid's face "I'm sure I can find away to, how would you say it? _Keep_ you hard." She whispered into his ear suggestively.

Hiccup glanced at her a grin appearing on his own face as he glanced at her "Is that a promise milady?"

Astrid nibbled the edge of his ear lightly "Of course. My dragon."

The Haddock Household got very little sleep that night.

* * *

Someone pounding on his door awoke him, Hiccup rolled out of bed and pulled his pants up quickly, his head darted around for his shirt and he pulled it over his head as he called out "Yeah, I'm coming hang on!"

They beat against the door again and Hiccup pulled it open "What in Thor's beard is it now?!"

"Hiccup," Fishlegs promptly ignored the smaller boys suggestive appearance "We found a girl who says she's from Outcast Island, she's got a lot of info that I think _you_ are going to want to hear."

Hiccup's face hardened as he nodded "I'll be down soon Leg's."

Fishlegs nodded as Hiccup swung the door closed, he walked over to Astrid who was still soundly asleep, which he uttered a thankful prayer for as he leant down and placed a light kiss on her forehead.

"I promise I'll end this soon." He voiced resolutely as he turned away from the bed and began strapping on his armor.

* * *

 **A/N: DUN DUUN DUUUUUUUUUUN. I wouldn't call this one a cliffhanger, more of a tease for what is to come as we approach the final arc of the Berserker/Outcast War! What are your theories? Hit me with predictions.**

 **I really hope you guys enjoyed this and I am sorry about the long semi-hiatus from HTTYD I just wasn't getting ideas and the chapters I was writing felt really forced and, for lack of a better word they were fucking horrible. But I do hope you enjoyed the Whispering Death and Screaming Death encounters, we have not seen the last of them in the slightest but I hope it was a satisfying read!**

 **Now onto our regularly scheduled replies!**

 **LoveInterest: Well, fluff is the good version of cheese, so that one's more of an opinion. I felt like it was kinda cheesy, but hey if it was actually just fluffy great!**

 **Mad Marty: Oh for sure, I read my reaction after I calmed down and I'm just like "Dayum, I need to bippity bopity back the fuck up." You made solid points of criticism and I reacted like a child, no harm done though! Glad you're still enjoying the story!**

 **Scarlet Lupin: I can't really promise a lot of updates, but I am gonna** _ **really**_ **push to make my brain cooperate with me so I can finish this story off in the next month or so, wish me luck! Hope you enjoyed this chapter though!**

 **OechsnerC: Not really a whole lot I can reply to 'hahaha' with. Hope that was enjoyment though!**

 **Duckie: I could straight up see Tuffnut doing something like that at an actual Hiccstrid wedding (Please don't give my brain idea's I am drowning in stories as it is!) Regardless I'm really glad you're enjoying it and you know, that you're not actually dead!**

 **Carl Solo: No problem, glad you enjoyed!**

 **Guest 1: Thanks, hopefully you enjoy this chapter as well!**

 **FireFlame159: Well, I mean it was necessary since I kinda said it was gonna happen and all, it was fun to write it out though. Hopefully this chapter makes up for it XD**

 **Guest 2: No problem at all, I'm glad you enjoyed it!**

 **NightStormPheonix: Well, I did say it was going to happen and I decided having the marriage happen before the conclusion was the best spot in the overarching story for a number of reasons that will be revealed later! Get excited (Or worried, if that's your thing. I can't tell you how to live your life.) For the future!**

 **Iris Patton: Oh yeah, I got that hence why I was just playing at innocence, my relationship with cliffhangers is perfectly healthy, I can stop writing them whenever I want to stop *Whistles again* NOOOOOO, nothing bad will happen *Visualizes many things* Yeah, nah, you right it's not gonna be smooth sailing at all.**

 **Rogue Deity Master: Yes, avoiding parasites is good. Although I don't really understand the context that's fine. Glad you enjoyed the chapter!**

 **ShadowSpirit020: That they are my friend! Glad you enjoyed!**


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